Department for Transport

Department for Transport: Pay

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the average hourly earnings of (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of his Department were in each of the last five years.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The table below shows the average hourly earnings for (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of the Department for Transport which includes:Department for Transport (c)Driver and Vehicle Licensing AgencyDriver and Vehicle Standards AgencyMaritime and Coastguard AgencyVehicle Certification AgencyGovernment Car ServiceHighways Agency YearFY 2010/11FY 2011/12FY 2012/13FY 013/14FY 2014/15[a] Female£13.58£13.85£14.28£14.75£15.21[b] Male£15.25£15.43£15.77£16.22£16.50[c] Full Time£14.85£15.05£15.43£15.91£16.23[d] Part time£14.00£14.24£14.52£14.78£15.17 Please note: the Government Car Services (GCS) does not hold information on FY 2010/2011 and FY 2011/2012 and is therefore not included in the Department return for these years.

Cycling: Accidents

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February 2016 to Question 23856, what assessment his Department has made of the reasons for the increase in the number of pedal cyclist-killed or seriously injured casualties attributable to poorly-maintained local roads since 2010.

Andrew Jones: The Department assesses all statistics which relate to pedal cyclist KSIs (killed or seriously injured casualties). The Conservative Manifesto 2015 had a commitment to reduce the number of cyclists and other road users killed or injured on our roads every year. We are working closely with road safety groups to consider what more can be done in the UK and we believe that every death is a tragedy and is one too many. We have committed £6.1 billion to tackle the condition of our local road network and, as part of our Road Investment Strategy - the largest upgrade to England’s strategic roads for a generation - we are spending around £100million on cycling safety. We are also working with local councils to provide new guidelines designed to ensure their highways are as safe as possible and free of defects. The change in the number of accidents is likely to result from a combination of a number of factors. These factors will include the natural variation in the figures and the subjective nature of contributory factors.

Boats: Waste Disposal

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will make assistance available to local authorities for the costs of disposing of abandoned boats, vessels and other sea-faring equipment.

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what powers are available to (a) parish, (b) district and (c) county councils to dispose of abandoned boats in coastal areas; and whether a disposal cost recovery scheme exists for such disposals.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Statutory Harbour Authorities (some of which are Local Authorities) have powers to deal with wrecks and unservicable and abandoned vessels within their harbour limits. These powers are available under sections 52, 56 and 57 of the Harbours, Docks and Piers Clauses Act 1847 (exercisable by the Harbour Master) and in section 252 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995. The powers allow the removal of wrecks and unserviceable and abandoned vessels and recovery of the cost of doing so from the owner or through disposal of the vessel. Where there is no statutory harbour authority or conservancy authority in place to use the powers in the Merchant Shipping Act 1995, under s253 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 the General Lighthouse Authority may use the same powers set out in section 252 to deal with such vessels where, in the authority’s opinion the vessel is, or is likely to become, an obstruction or danger to navigation or to lifeboats engaged in lifeboat service. The receiver of wreck, who only deals with wrecked vessels and is a statutory appointment under the Merchant Shipping Act 1995, has powers under section 243 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 to dispose of unclaimed wrecks one year after they come into the receiver’s possession. The Act sets out the dissemination of the proceeds of sale after disposal expenses. Statutory Harbour Authorities operate on a commercial basis without ongoing support from Government and the General Lighthouse Authority are fully funded from a tax on shipping, receiving no money from the UK exchequer. There are no plans for any other funding to be made available.

Railways: Tickets

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport of 10 December 2015, Official Report, column 1132, on smart ticketing, whether the £80 million funding referred to has been allocated to the South East Flexible Ticketing programme; and what proportion of that funding his Department has so far spent on which elements of that programme.

Claire Perry: Smart ticketing was taken forward by the Coalition Government after 2010. I can confirm that £80m was allocated to the South East Flexible Ticketing (SEFT) programme. So far, £39.11m has been spent on the SEFT programme to develop a central back office for the entire rail industry to use and towards the costs to train operators of new infrastructure and upgrades. We are working with the industry to find the best way to deliver smart ticket solutions that meet customers’ needs and take advantage of technological improvements, so ensuring that everyone is benefitting from 21st century ticketing.

Railways: Fares

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2016 to Question 27121, what the implied average annual season ticket fare referred to in that Answer is.

Claire Perry: The cost of annual season tickets varies by route. The Department for Transport has access to commercially confidential information which allows us to assess how many season tickets have been sold at which prices, to determine the average season ticket price. This process was originally carried out using 13/14 sales data and then increased in line with regulated fares policy. Because this information is derived from information we are licensed to use, from the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC), we are not able to share this publically.

Railways: North of England

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the premium and subsidy profile of the new TransPennine Express franchise will be in each year of that franchise's operation.

Andrew Jones: These figures are published annually by the Office of Road and Rail at http://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/displayreport/html/html/95218cca-408d-4047-83ce-a542c53b59e6.

Railways: EU Law

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 February 2016 to Question 26170, whether his departmental officials conducting EU negotiations on behalf of the Government on the European Commission's Fourth Railway Package have a consolidated version of Regulation (EC) No 1370/2007 as amended or a similar equivalent.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Amendments to Regulation (EC) 1370/2007, as part of the European Commission’s Fourth Railway Package, are under active negotiation and therefore remain subject to discussion and modification. No consolidated text has yet been issued. The Council’s general approach reached at Transport Council on 8 October 2015, is available from http://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-12777-2015-INIT/en/pdf.Once a final text is agreed, this will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union. A consolidated version of Regulation (EC) No 1370/2007 as amended once the final text is agreed will also be made publicly available via http://eur-lex.europa.eu.

Network Rail

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much in Schedule 4 and Schedule 8 compensation payments Network Rail paid to train operating companies in each year from 2009-10 to 2015-16; and what Schedule 4 payments Network Rail received from train operating companies in that period.

Claire Perry: This information is published on Network Rail’s website - http://www.networkrail.co.uk/transparency/datasets/ - covering the years 2011-12 to 2014-15. 2015-16 is not yet available and the Department does not hold this information for the years 2009-10 or 2010-11. The Schedule 8 values are net of compensation payments due from train and freight operating companies. The net payment agreed with individual operators is arrived at through a process of attribution of delays where many factors are taken into consideration and compensation amounts are incurred both ways. Network Rail does not receive compensation payments under schedule 4.

High Speed Two: Staff

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to HS2 Ltd's Information Paper, G3: Construction Commissioner, published on 16 December 2015, what annual salary he expects to pay to the HS2 Construction Commissioner; to what body the Construction Commissioner will report; what steps he will take to safeguard the Commissioner's independence from his Department and HS2 Ltd; for what reasons the Commissioner will not be able to consider claims for losses of over £10,000; and what the exemption from the role of matters considered by Parliament in approving the project is planned cover.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The HS2 Construction Commissioner will report to a steering group that will be entirely independent of HS2 Ltd and the Department for Transport. The independent steering group will be responsible for agreeing the Commissioner’s terms of reference. It is envisaged that the steering group will include members who represent community interests and the construction industry. The Construction Commissioner and independent steering group will be appointed in time for when HS2 construction begins. The salary of the HS2 Construction Commissioner is expected to be £575 per day, based on working eight days per month, and is in line with other comparable roles. This will be subject to review by the independent steering group. The Commissioner will be responsible for investigating complaints relating to the construction of HS2 Phase One that cannot be resolved through HS2 Ltd’s corporate complaints procedure. In addition, it is anticipated that one of the roles of the HS2 Construction Commissioner will be to act as an arbitrator for the HS2 Small Claims Scheme in the event that a dispute cannot be resolved through the normal process. The Small Claims Scheme is expected to have an initial maximum claim value of £10,000. This figure is provisional, based on other infrastructure projects, and will be subject to review by the steering group. Further information regarding the HS2 Small Claims Scheme is available in HS2 Information Paper C10, which can be accessed via the following weblink:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/high-speed-rail-london-west-midlands-bill

Taxis: Licensing

Mrs Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the effect of the five times increase in the annual upfront fee charges for private hire operator licences by local authorities on small and self-employed operators.

Andrew Jones: Local licensing authorities can charge fees for private hire vehicle operator licences that recover the cost of administering the licensing system. Renewing a licence every five years, rather than more frequently as may have been the case in the past, reduces a financial and administrative burden on many of the small and medium size enterprises that make up the private hire vehicle industry.

Taxis: Licensing

Mrs Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the local licensing authorities on the introduction of five-year private hire operator licences by local authorities.

Andrew Jones: Five-year private hire vehicle operator licences were introduced in October 2015. Since that time, local licensing authorities have not made any representations to me on the subject.

Railway Stations

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what consultations have taken place on privatisation of railway stations currently owned by Network Rail; and which stakeholders have been so consulted.

Claire Perry: Network Rail is exploring new models for station management and ownership with the goal to bring improvements for both passengers and the communities they serve. They have engaged Citigroup as advisors to consider a range of potential options but no decisions have been taken at this early stage. Any decisions on such potential future options will take account of the ‎findings of Nicola Shaw's report into the longer term shape and financing of Network Rail.

Railway Stations

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans there are for (a) Transport for the North, (b) Transport for Greater Manchester and (c) Transport for London to take over from Network Rail the management or ownership of railway stations.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport is working with Network Rail and other parties to explore new models for station management and ownership with the goal to bring improvements for both passengers and the communities they serve. Any decisions on such potential future options will take account of the ‎recommendations of Nicola Shaw's report into the longer term shape and financing of Network Rail, and the government would expect any proposals to demonstrate improvements for passengers and value for money for the taxpayer.

Railway Stations

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what work Citigroup is conducting for Network Rail in relation to the ownership of railway stations; what fee has been paid to Citigroup for such work; and when the review into the ownership of railway stations is expected to report.

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which railway stations currently owned by Network Rail are being considered for potential sale or new concessions.

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the value of railway stations owned by Network Rail.

Claire Perry: Network Rail is exploring new models for the management and ownership of its 18 managed stations with the goal of bringing improvements for both passengers and the communities they serve. They have engaged Citigroup as advisors to consider a range of potential options. No decisions have yet been taken and no estimate of the potential value of these stations has been made as part of this work. Citigroup were appointed following a competitive tender process, and the details of their fee are commercially confidential. Network Rail expect that this work will be presented to their Board by the end of 2016.

Department for Communities and Local Government

European Regional Development Fund

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what work his Department is doing in relation to its responsibility for the European Regional Development Fund.

James Wharton: My Department will continue carrying out its responsibilities as Managing Authority of the England European Regional Development Fund programmes.

European Regional Development Fund: North West

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many pupils in the North West have received funding from the European Regional Development Fund; and what the total investment from that fund in that region has been in each year since 2000.

James Wharton: The European Regional Development Fund does not provide funding to pupils.The total investment for the Fund 2000-06 programme period in the North West was equivalent to just under £1.5 billion.The figures for the 2007-13 European Regional Developement Fund programme, where investment commenced in 2009, are as follows:YearAnnual expenditure (£m)Cumulative expenditure (£m)   2009168.2168.2201056.3224.5201163.2287.7201260.8348.5201381.2429.72014123.8553.5201556.9610.4

Multiple Occupation: Licensing

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 11 February 2016 to Question 26305; what estimate his Department has made of the total number of licenses granted for houses of multiple occupation which are in use in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: I have nothing to add to my earlier reply.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

North Korea: Guided Weapons

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with officials of (a) NATO and (b) the EU on the recent ballistic missile launched by North Korea.

Mr Hugo Swire: The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), strongly condemned the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK)’s satellite launch of 7 February, which used ballistic missile technology in clear violation of a number of UN Security Council Resolutions.The Government continues to work closely with partners in NATO and the EU to ensure significant and substantive measures are agreed in response to the DPRK’s repeated provocations. In addition, we continue to work with international partners to ensure existing Resolutions are implemented effectively.

Maldives: Rule of Law

Dr Paul Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the application of the rule of law in the Maldives.

Mr Hugo Swire: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 3 February 2016 (PQ 24568) regarding the UK Government’s concern about the erosion of judicial independence in the Maldives.

North Korea: Political Prisoners

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the government of North Korea on the arrest of Mr Otto Frederick Warmbier, and the detention of Hyeon Soo Lim and Kim Dong Chul.

Mr Hugo Swire: We are aware of the cases of the US and Canadian nationals who have been arrested and detained by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Sweden, which has consular responsibility for these individuals, is providing assistance.

Indonesia: Religious Freedom

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions the Government has had with the Indonesian government on the situation of Ahmadis in Bangka, Indonesia.

Mr Hugo Swire: We take freedom of religion or belief extremely seriously. We regularly urge Governments to protect the right of all individuals to practise their religion or belief free from persecution or discrimination. In this regard, we are concerned with the plight of the Ahmadiyah community in Bangka regency. Our Ambassador in Jakarta has discussed these issues, including the plight of the Ahamdiyah community, with the Minister of Religious Affairs, Indonesian civil society, and religious leaders. He urged them to ensure the rights of all individuals to practise their religion or belief freely were fully respected and protected.

UK Membership of EU: Referendums

Dr Paul Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made on preparations for the EU referendum.

Mr David Lidington: Secondary legislation required for the referendum is making good progress. The Conduct Regulations, which set out the detailed framework of how the poll will be administered, have been debated in both Houses of Parliament. The date of the referendum must be agreed by Parliament in another statutory instrument which was laid before Parliament in draft on 22 February.On 23 February the Electoral Commission published its "assessment of readiness" which endorsed the Government's approach and noted that "arrangements for delivery of a well-run referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union are well advanced".

Bangladesh: Religious Freedom

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what contribution his Department has made to the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief's report on Bangladesh which will be published in March 2016.

Mr Hugo Swire: Officials from the British High Commission in Dhaka discussed the preliminary findings of Heiner Bielefeldt, Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief with him during his visit to Bangladesh in September 2015. We look forward to the release of his report at the UN Human Rights Council in March 2016 and will encourage the Government of Bangladesh to consider all its recommendations carefully.

Bangladesh: Human Rights

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Bangladesh.

Mr Hugo Swire: We closely follow the human rights situation in Bangladesh. We welcome the Government of Bangladesh’s stated commitment to protecting human rights but where credible allegations of abuses are made, we are consistent in raising them with the Government. In particular we condemn all forms of violence and excessive use of force, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and attacks against secularists and religious minorities. We make clear our opposition to the death penalty. We are also clear that a vibrant civil society and a media that is free to discuss and debate freely are fundamental to building democracy and should be protected and preserved.

China: State Visits

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much (a) the Government and (b) each government department spent on (i) arrangements and (ii) hospitality for the Chinese state visit in October 2015.

James Duddridge: The full cost of inward State Visits is borne by a number of different Government Departments. We do not yet have the costs borne by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for the 2015 State Visit by the President of China. These will be published on the gov.uk website once available.

UK Membership of EU

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of a UK withdrawal from the EU on relations between the UK and Ireland.

Mr David Lidington: Holding answer received on 25 February 2016



At the February European Council the Government negotiated a new settlement, giving the United Kingdom a special status in a reformed European Union. The Government's view is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.The Government believes that the best context for friendly and constructive bilateral relations with the Republic of Ireland is common membership of a reformed European Union. A vote to leave the EU in the referendum would bring with it uncertainty across a range of issues.

Africa: Embassies

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many full-time equivalent officials are (a) budgeted for and (b) actually employed in each African country in which the UK has an Embassy or High Commission.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The attached spreadsheet (PQ 28132 - FTE Africa v0.3) details the number of UK based FCO staff budgeted for and employed in each African country which the UK has an Embassy or High Commission.



UK based FCO staff employed in African Embassies
(Excel SpreadSheet, 12.81 KB)

Overseas Aid

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much and what proportion of his Department's overseas development assistance budget his Department spent was subject to the International Development Act 2002 in each of the last three years.

Mr David Lidington: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

UK Membership of EU: Referendums

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on (a) geopolitical stability and (b) the UK's influence in the world.

Mr Philip Hammond: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Employment: Telephone Services

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many calls the Pay and Work Rights helpline received in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2014-15 and (c) 2015-16; and how much funding that helpline received in each year between 2010-11 and 2013-14.

Nick Boles: Table 1: Total enquiries to the Pay and Work Rights Helpline, 2009/10 to 2014/15.2009/102010/112011/122012/132013/142014/15Total66,30050,50047,50041,30042,90041,500Source: Pay and Workers Rights HelplineNotes: 1. Reporting years are based on April to March, with the exception of 2009/10 as the Helpline opened in May 2009.Since 1 April 2015, the Acas Helpline has, in addition to its usual services, been answering queries previously handled by the Pay and Work Rights Helpline (PWRH). Between April 2015 and January 2016, the latest period for which data is available, Acas have handled 768,849 calls on workplace relations and employment law. This figure is not directly comparable to the number of calls received by the PWRH in previous years as Acas handle a much wider range of enquiries on employment matters. It is not possible to specifically identify the number of calls received by Acas that would previously have been handled by the PWRH. The allocated funding for the PWRH was as follows:2010/112011/122012/132013/14Total£588,185£588,185£655,760£802,500. Notes: 2. Reporting years are based on April to March with the exception of 2010/11 and 2011/12 which are based on 11 May to 10 May. All figures are ex-VAT.

Company Voluntary Arrangements

Alan Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many company voluntary arrangements (CVAs) have been made in the last two years; how many such arrangements have been renegotiated due to a change in circumstances; and for what reasons those CVAs have been unsuccessful.

Anna Soubry: The number of company voluntary arrangements for the calendar years 2014 and 2015 is shown in the table below.Total Number of Company Voluntary Arrangements in the UK, 2014 – 2015Company Voluntary Arrangements YearEngland & WalesScotlandNorthern IrelandTotal201455214376032015 (e)357435396Total9091872999 Source:Insolvency Statistics: October to December 2015Notes:(e) = estimatedThe Insolvency Service analysed individual records filed at Companies House, in respect of a sample of 53 CVA proceedings which commenced in 2012/13. This analysis showed that, by summer 2015, around 60 per cent had been unsuccessful under the original terms of the arrangement (including those that were renegotiated). No information was collected on the reasons behind the CVA being unsuccessful..

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: Pay

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the average hourly earnings of (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of his Department were in each of the last five years.

Joseph Johnson: Average earnings are published by the Office for National Statistics, for all departments on an annual basis. The latest publication date was 8 October 2015. Breaking these figures down to an hourly basis could only be provided at disproportionate cost.Detailed breakdowns of mean and median salaries for female, male, full time and part time staff are contained in the Civil Service Statistics Statistical Bulletin Tables available here:2011: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-2293102012: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-2793352013: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-3198022014: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-3753682015: http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-414427

Post Offices

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many (a) local and (b) main post offices were open at the end of (i) April 2015 and (ii) January 2016.

George Freeman: Provision of the post office network is the operational responsibility of the Post Office.I have therefore asked Paula Vennells, the Chief Executive of Post Office Limited, to write to you on this matter. A copy of her reply will be placed in the libraries of the House.

Exports

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the ability of the Government to reach the target set in 2012 of doubling exports to £1 trillion per annum by 2020.

Anna Soubry: Ministers have acknowledged that the £1 trillion target is a stretch; however, the Government has a clear strategy for increasing both the value of UK exports and the number of British exporters. This is set out in the Government’s evidence to the BIS Select Committee inquiry into Exports and the Role of UK Trade & Investment. Progress in delivering against the target will be reported through the ONS.

Post Office: Staff

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many staff from Crown Post Offices that were franchised in 2014 and 2015 (a) transferred to employment with a franchise partner and (b) reached settlement agreements with the Post Office to leave its employment.

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the cost was to the public purse of settlement agreements for staff from  Crown Post Offices which were franchised in 2014 and 2015.

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the cost to the public purse has been of the refurbishment of Crown Post Offices in Lancaster since January 2010.

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the cost was to the public purse of indemnification of franchise partners to meet the costs for staff from Crown Post Offices who transferred into their employment in 2014 and 2015.

George Freeman: Post Office Limited runs and manages its directly managed Crown post offices. Arrangements for employees of these offices and changes to the Crown network are the operational responsibility of the Post Office.I have therefore asked Paula Vennells, the Chief Executive of Post Office Limited, to write to you on this matter. A copy of her reply will be placed in the libraries of the House.

Job Creation: Sellafield and Solway Firth

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will take steps to ensure that jobs created by the (a) new nuclear project at Moorside and (b) the Solway Firth Tidal Lagoon project are available to local people.

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he has taken to ensure that young people in West Cumbria are equipped with the skills they need to access newly-created jobs in the nuclear and renewable energy sectors.

Anna Soubry: The Government is working with the energy industry to maximise economic benefits from new electricity generation projects and is providing support to enhance the competitiveness of the supply chain, including improving the skills and employability of the construction workers in the industry. In addition Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership has identified nuclear and energy excellence as a key priority contributing significant growth opportunities for the Cumbria economy. The Local Enterprise Partnership has strong ambitions to drive growth across the Cumbria area by improving the delivery of skills, infrastructure, environmental sustainability and business support.

Antidumping: Russia and USA

Ruth Smeeth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2016 to Question 24530, what methodology is used to calculate prices in connection with anti-dumping cases relating to the US and Russia.

Anna Soubry: The US and Russia are both treated as market economies in anti-dumping investigations by the European Commission. This means that, with some exceptions, dumping is calculated on the basis of prices prevailing in the US and Russian domestic market. The exceptions are set out in Council Regulation (EC) No 1225/2009 (the EU’s basic anti-dumping Regulation) and the World Trade Organisation Agreement on Implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (the “AD agreement”).

Ceramics: China

Ruth Smeeth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if his Department will make an assessment of whether prices of imported ceramic goods from China reflect the domestic costs of production.

Anna Soubry: It is for industry to demonstrate prima facie evidence of dumping to the European Commission. We encourage industry to present this evidence to the Commission where there is evidence of dumping. Where evidence is sufficient to justify an investigation the Commission will do so and present any proposals for imposing duties to Member States. Trade defence is an EU competence and for the Commission to investigate.

Sunday Trading: Public Consultation

Mr David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many responses his Department received from (a) convenience stores, (b) shop workers and (c) faith groups to the consultation on Sunday trading devolution.

Anna Soubry: The Department does not hold full data from this consultation broken down by specific question as a large portion of respondents chose to respond in their own words rather than addressing the consultation questions directly, and/or did not indicate the type of organisation they represented.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: Fringe Benefits

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many staff in his Department and non-departmental public bodies receive (a) home to work travel allowance, (b) a car allowance and (c) subsidised health insurance.

Joseph Johnson: If staff are on a detached duty or overseas postings they can claim for certain travel expenses. Out of 2514 employees in BIS HQ, fewer than 20 employees are paid reasonable extra travel costs. These are paid for a limited period. There are no BIS policies that allow the payments of car allowances or subsidised health insurance to employees. However BIS has a legal obligation to honour contractual arrangements when staff join through a TUPE transfer including car allowances and subsidised health cover. Due to TUPE transfers, there are fewer than 20 employees paid car allowances or subsidised health cover. These benefits would not be renewed for new employees. As the number of payments are so low, exact numbers have not been provided to ensure that individual employees are not identifiable. The requested information is not held by BIS in respect of non-Departmental Public Bodies.

Trade Agreements: North America

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether the investor-state dispute settlement mechanisms in the (a) Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) agreement and (b) EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) apply to local authorities in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: The investment protection provisions of trade and investment agreements such as the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and the EU-US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) will typically apply to the acts of local authorities but claims under the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanisms of those agreements may only be brought against the UK or the EU.The question of investment protection and ISDS provisions in TTIP is still under negotiation. The Government wants any such provisions to reflect the right of governments to act in the public interest and deter investors from making unnecessary and speculative claims.

Charities: Research

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will maintain the level of funding of the Charity Research Support Fund in real terms over the next five years.

Joseph Johnson: The Government has protected the science budget in real terms to the end of the Parliament. Our intention is to formally allocate budgets to individual funding bodies in the coming weeks. The Government recognises the significant contribution made by charitable funders of research, which the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), has reflected through the charity support element of Quality Related research funding. Decisions by HEFCE on any funding beyond 2015-16 will be taken once they have received their annual Grant Letter which, sets out their funding allocations.

Further Education

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what consideration his Department plans to give to local availability of courses in area reviews of further education.

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether he plans that his Department's further education area reviews will incorporate equality impact assessments.

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what representations he has received on the timescale for the completion of the area review process in further education.

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the cost of (a) completing and (b) implementing further education area reviews.

Nick Boles: Government will produce an evaluation of the area review programme and its potential to impact on groups protected by the Equality Act 2010. The reviews do not however, mandate action, and colleges are independent corporations, so it will be for each college’s governing body to assess the potential impact on groups protected by the Act, as part of its decision to accept or reject any recommendation requiring a change to their provision.Each area review steering group will consider relevant data relating to current courses delivered within their area, assess the relevance of these courses to local learner and employer needs and determine how current and future demand can be best met through the recommendations of the area review.Individual area reviews are expected to take about four months, the timescale being dependent on the number of colleges and complexity of the local issues involved in each area. The overall review process has been divided into five waves of area reviews and is scheduled to be completed by March 2017We expect the costs of completing an area review to be met within existing budgets, with minimal additional costs to the colleges, local authorities or LEPs involved. The Departments and their agencies will undertake this work with no additional staffing. Additional costs will be minimal.The costs arising from the recommendations of each review will be explored as part of the process. We expect the colleges, alongside local authorities and LEPs with devolved skills budgets, to consider how these costs can be met locally. Where there are costs that cannot be met, but which are essential to the successful implementation of the review, we have announced a facility for transitional funding to support this. We will provide more detail in due course.

UK Trade and Investment: Finance

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on levels of exports of changes in the budget of UK Trade and Investment between 2015 and 2020.

Anna Soubry: Savings will broadly be delivered through implementing a new digital infrastructure to provide cost-effective access to export services; contractual efficiencies; and prioritising market and sector opportunities that will add most value to UK export levels. This is about being more efficient and delivering for UK businesses, including through enhancing direct support and developing the private sector market.HM Treasury has recognised the importance of the exports agenda by agreeing that £175m of further proposed savings between 2016-17 and 2019-20 should be reinvested in priority areas. The Government is committed to driving a step-change in UK exports and the reinvestment secured to refocus UK Trade & Investment will help us deliver this.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: Staff

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many staff in his Department have relocated (a) out of London and (b) into London in each of the last five years.

Joseph Johnson: The Department of Business, Innovation and Skills does not hold that information centrally. To gather and analyse this information would incur disproportionate costs.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: Buildings

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, which offices outside London he does not plan to close under the BIS 2020 strategy.

Joseph Johnson: The intention to close the BIS Sheffield office at St Paul’s Place is based on our strategy to simplify our delivery and focus expertise in specific areas over five years to 2020. Therefore, our policy function needs to be in one place, close to Ministers, and the Department made a decision to locate all our policy functions in the HQ in London. Other decisions around our estates will be taken in due course and will, of course, be subject to consultation. We therefore cannot give an estimate of when all decisions on the Department’s estate will be concluded.

Post Offices

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, for what reasons changes to Crown branches take place outside the scope of formal Crown transformation programmes.

George Freeman: The provision of its Crown branches is the commercial responsibility of Post Office Limited.Like any commercial organisation, Post Office Limited continually reviews all elements of its business to ensure they are effective and efficient. Changes are essential to ensure the long term viability and competitiveness of any company, whether these are as part of a dedicated transformation programme or in the normal course of operations.

Self-employed: Parental Leave

Susan Elan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to improve access to parental leave for self-employed people.

Nick Boles: In July 2015 my Rt hon Friend the Prime Minister appointed Julie Deane OBE to look at what more could be done to support the self-employed. Julie Deane’s report ‘Self-Employment Review’ was published on 14th February and can be viewed at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/500358/ind-16-2-self-employment-review.pdf The Government is reviewing her recommendations in regard to this area carefully.

UK Trade and Investment: Meetings

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many meetings he has held with UK Trade and Investment trade envoys since May 2015.

Anna Soubry: My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills hosted a roundtable alongside my noble Friend Lord Maude of Horsham at the House of Lords for all Trade Envoys on 9th February 2016. To the best of our knowledge, my Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State has not held individual meetings with any of the Trade Envoys.

UK Trade and Investment: Finance

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what financial and other resources the Government makes available to UK Trade and Investment trade envoys.

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the cost of the trade envoy programme has been since its launch in September 2012.

Anna Soubry: To fulfil their overseas and UK travel commitments, there is a dedicated budget for the Trade Envoys. Total cost of the programme to date has been £424,529

UK Trade and Investment: Visits Abroad

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many overseas visits have been carried out by UK Trade and Investment trade envoys in each year since September 2012.

Anna Soubry: The table below shows the number of overseas visits taken by Trade Envoys since September 2012. YearNumber of Overseas visits2012120139201437201534201612Total 93

Private Sector: Human Rights

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent assessment he has made of the performance of his Department's UK National Contact Point in investigating complaints on private sector contract compliance with UK human rights commitments.

Anna Soubry: The UK National Contact Point (NCP) for the OECD Multi-National Enterprise Guidelines considers complaints that UK based multinationals have not met the voluntary obligations of the Guidelines in regard to responsible business behaviour. Ministers have no role in the NCP’s investigation of complaints, but ensure that its final statements on complaints are available for scrutiny in the House Libraries. The UK NCP also reports annually to the OECD Investment Committee which is responsible for the Guidelines and their implementation. The UK Government is committed to fulfilling its obligations under the OECD Multi-National Enterprise Guidelines and maintaining a NCP which operates in line with international best practice. The UK NCP is regularly invited by the OECD to contribute to best practice sharing and the OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria has praised its effectiveness and positive outcomes.

Department for International Development

Saudi Arabia: Arms Trade

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what representations her Department has (a) made to and (b) received from Saferworld, Unicef, Save the Children and Oxfam on UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia in the last 12 months.

Justine Greening: DFID Yemen has longstanding and close working relationships with each of these four organisations, all of whom receive UK funding. Our dialogue covers all areas of relevant DFID policy, in particular our four priorities: supporting UN efforts to start political talks and return to an inclusive political process; increasing commercial imports of food, fuel and medical supplies; improving humanitarian access into and within Yemen; and strengthening the international community’s response to the crisis.

Saudi Arabia: Arms Trade

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions her Department has had with (a) other government departments and (b) external organisations on the effects of UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia on the delivery of development aid.

Justine Greening: DFID plays a key role in the UK government’s wider efforts to promote a more stable Yemen that is more able to address its humanitarian needs, working closely with other government departments to ensure that our combined diplomatic, humanitarian and military efforts make the maximum contribution to improving the situation in Yemen.As part of this, we discuss all issues of relevance to the humanitarian response. We also meet regularly with external organisations to discuss the humanitarian situation and delivery of aid in Yemen.

Saudi Arabia: Arms Trade

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the contributions of the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee, 27 January 2016, Question 28, and on 3 February 2016, Official Report, column 908, what the evidential basis is for the statements that export of arms by the UK to Saudi Arabia is not undermining her Department's humanitarian work in Yemen.

Justine Greening: The UK is the fourth largest donor to the crisis in Yemen, committing £85million this year. Funding those agencies and NGOs who have the best access and ability to deliver humanitarian assistance in Yemen means we have been able to provide support to over 1.3m Yemenis. In recent weeks, UK food aid has also been delivered to some of the hardest to reach areas of Taiz.Nevertheless, the conflict in Yemen does make it difficult for agencies to operate and deliver humanitarian aid to all those who need it. That is why a lasting ceasefire is so important. We are doing all we can to support the UN to convene a further round of peace talks over the coming weeks and to renew the ceasefire.

Developing Countries: HIV Infection

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will take steps to ensure that HIV prevention is fully integrated into her Department's work on sexual and reproductive health and rights; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Nick Hurd: The UK continues to work with partners to ensure that HIV prevention services are fully integrated and embedded within our work on sexual reproductive health and rights, family planning, maternal and new born health and broader health and development priorities.For example, DFID’s integrated Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights programme in Zimbabwe is designed to help reduce maternal mortality, HIV incidence and violence against women through the delivery of better integrated services. Through our focus on women and girl’s empowerment we are also supporting the generation of new evidence to improve outcomes for women and girls, including supporting the development of female initiated HIV prevention technologies, while strengthening health systems and tackling the broader drivers of the epidemic such as stigma, discrimination and gender inequality.

Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department has taken or plans to take to build the capacity of communities to (a) engage with the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and (b) hold their governments to account for engagement on that issue.

Mr Nick Hurd: The UK is the third largest donor of the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, pledging up to £1 billion between 2014 and 2016, subject to a 10% donor share cap. This is improving the lives of millions of people, saving approximately 580,000 lives by preventing 8.4m new malaria, HIV and TB infections.The Global Fund encourages active participation of communities at all levels, from grant design, implementation and oversight at country level through country coordination mechanisms, to the Global Fund Board.DFID is a founding supporter and pledged up to £9m to the Robert Carr Civil Society Networks Fund. We are also amongst the top five funders of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) which was created in 1996 to respond to the growing HIV/AIDS crisis. Both of these are critical in building the capacity of networks of inadequately served communities to engage with the Global Fund and hold governments to account.

Drugs: Research

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the Government plans to do to support reforms to research and development of pharmaceuticals at the World Health Organisaiton meeting in March 2016.

Mr Nick Hurd: The meeting at the World Health Organisation (WHO) has been postponed to May 2016 and arrangements about the meeting are at an early stage. DFID officials are engaging with WHO on their plans.The UK Government priority is to see a Pooled Fund for Research and Development established with support from WHO Member States, especially those that have not yet provided funding for this type of work. The UK Government supports systems that separate the market incentives to produce a drug or vaccine, from the Research & Development process, prioritise public health need over profit and work in partnership with a wide range of different organisations, covering the public, private and philanthropic sectors. The UK is the second largest government supporter of product development partnerships, which prioritise need over profit, and have a proven track record in developing new products.

Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what proportion of donations to the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisations she expects the UK's share to be at the end of the 2016 to 2020 funding period.

Mr Nick Hurd: Based on pledges made at Gavi’s replenishment conference in January 2015, the UK share of the total budget for Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, from 2016 to 2020 will be 26%. However, I expect that this level may vary according to other donor pledges.Since 2000, Gavi has vaccinated half a billion children and saved 7 million lives. The UK pledge of £1 billion for the 2016 to 2020 period, by itself, is likely to vaccinate an additional 76 million children and save 1.4 million lives.

Ethiopia: Food Aid

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will increase Government funding for emergency food aid to Ethiopia.

Mr Nick Hurd: We are very concerned about the impact of the current drought on the food security situation for 18 million people across Ethiopia. Britain is working closely with the Government of Ethiopia and the international community to ensure adequate funding for drought response activities.We acted quickly and decisively at the onset of the drought by providing emergency food aid for 2.1 million people in 2015. This year, we have committed £40 million to provide food aid to a further 3.8 million people in April.In collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund, DFID is also ensuring that 120,000 severely malnourished children receive treatment in order to recover quickly.Our overall funding for the drought to date is £113 million. We are continuing to work with the Government of Ethiopia and other donors to make sure needs are being met. We are monitoring the situation closely.UK Aid resilience work with the Government of Ethiopia has helped prepare 10 million people to cope with this drought.

Overseas Aid

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, which Departments other than her Department, the Ministry of Defence, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for Energy and Climate Change have responsibility for Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) spending under the terms of the International Development Act 2002; and what proportion of those Departments' ODA spending was subject to the Act in each of the last three years.

Mr Nick Hurd: It is for individual government departments to determine the legal basis of their ODA spend.DFID does not monitor what proportion of other government departments’ Official Development Assistance spending was subject to IDA 2002.Details of departmental spend on Official Development Assistance (ODA) can be found in the National Statistics publication Statistics on International Development (SID) at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-international-development/about/statistics, although this does not identify the proportions of spend under IDA 2002.

Department for International Development: Staff

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many staff leaving employment at her Department in the last three years have subsequently been rehired within 12 months by the (a) Foreign and Commonwealth Office, (b) Ministry of Defence, (c) Department for Energy and Climate Change, (d) Department for Culture, Media and Sport, (e) Cabinet Office and (f) HM Treasury.

Mr Nick Hurd: DFID would not record or have access to details of former employees who have been rehired by other government departments.

Department for Education

Department for Education: Freedom of Information

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many freedom of information requests were (a) granted and (b) refused by her Department in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: The Government publishes statistics on the operation of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 within central government, including on the numbers of requests granted and refused. These can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/government-foi-statisticsYearRequests receivedResolvable requests [1] Resolvable requests granted in fullFully withheldPartially withheld2010880733549 (75%)1136020111,149937590 (63%)18612220121,3091,038686 (66%)18213920131,7591,354931 (69%)25614820141,7451,307803 (61%)3471552015 (Q1 to Q3)1,5481,143687 (60%)195213[1] Requests in which it was possible to give a substantive decision on whether to release the information being sought; for example, excluding requests where the information sought was not held or further clarification was necessary.

Languages: Education

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many students were entered for (a) GCSE and (b) A levels in (i) Arabic, (ii) modern Greek, (iii) Japanese, (iv) Urdu, (v) Bengali, (vi) modern Hebrew, (vii) Punjabi, (viii) Polish, (ix) Dutch, (x) Persian, (xi) Turkish, (xii) Albanian, (xiii) Cantonese and (xiv) Mandarin in (A) total and (B) each region in (1) 2011, (2) 2012, (3) 2013, (4) 2014 and (5) 2015; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: It is not possible to identify pupils entered for Mandarin Chinese from data held by the Department. The Department does hold information on the number of entries into GCSE Chinese which includes Mandarin Chinese and other Chinese subjects, including Cantonese.There is no GCSE or A level qualification in Albanian.The table attached provides information on the number of GCSE and A level entries for the stated subjects in each region between 2010/11 and 2014/15. [1][2][1] Coverage is for all state-funded schools (including academies and CTCs) in England.[2] Figure has been suppressed due to low numbers (1 or 2 pupils) or where secondary suppression has been applied.



Number of A level entries
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Number of GCSE entries
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Department for Education: Pay

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average hourly earnings of (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of her Department were in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education pays annual salaries. These have been converted to hourly rates using the calculation ((Gross Basic Salary*FTE)/52)/Weekly hours: Mar-12Mar-13Mar-14Mar-15Jan-16a) Male£21.62£22.25£22.30£22.37£22.30b) Female£19.73£19.85£20.09£20.36£20.54c) Full-time£20.64£21.02£21.16£21.24£21.28d) Part-time£19.65£19.70£20.15£21.01£21.25  This illustrates a positive trend as over the five year period the pay gap between men and women has reduced from 8.7% to 7.9% and the pay gap between full-time and part-time employees has reduced from 4.8% to 0.1%.

Teachers: Equality

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what her Department's rationale was for allocating £30,000 to provide training or recruitment of teachers with protected characteristics.

Nick Gibb: School workforce census data continues to show under-representation of particular groups of individuals within leadership positions (in particular for Black and Minority Ethnic and female leaders).The Leadership Equality and Diversity Fund supports teachers from under-represented groups (as measured by the protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010) to prepare for leadership positions.

Regional Schools Commissioners

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many specialist contractors hired by her Department to advise regional school commissioners there are; and how much her Department spent on such contractors in the last financial year.

Edward Timpson: The Department has contracted 92 suppliers to provide education specialist contractors to support the academies and free school programme. Further details can be found in Annex G of the supplementary evidence submitted to the Education Select Committee on the role of RSCs, which can be found here:http://data.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/committeeevidence.svc/evidencedocument/education-committee/the-role-of-regional-schools-commissioners/written/25134.html In financial year 2014-15, the Department spent £1,112,580.53 on education specialist contractors to support the regional school commissioners.

Physical Education

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of (a) maintained primary schools, (b) maintained secondary schools, (c) primary academies and (d) secondary academies provide at least two hours of physical education per week.

Edward Timpson: Information on the proportion of schools providing at least two hours of physical education (PE) per week is not held by the Department.Through the primary PE and sport premium, primary schools have received over £450m of ring-fenced funding to improve PE and sport. We have committed to continue this funding until 2020. In December 2015, we published a report looking at how schools used the primary PE and sport premium and the impact of the fund on PE and sports provision. Primary schools reported spending around 2 hours per week on curricular PE in both 2013/14 and 2014/15[1]. 87% of schools also reported that the quality of PE teaching had increased since the introduction of the premium.We do not hold information on how much time is spent on curricular PE for secondary schools.[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pe-and-sport-premium-an-investigation-in-primary-schools

Schools: Admissions

Jeff Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of implications for her policies of the finding in the Fair Admissions Campaign's report, An unholy mess, published in October 2015, that schools which are their own admission authorities are consistently failing to comply with the School Admissions Code.

Nick Gibb: Many of the findings of the report echo those reported by the Chief Schools Adjudicator in her Annual Report for the 2013/14 school year. The Government will shortly consult on a package of changes to the School Admissions Code which will both respond to concerns from parents and to the findings in the Chief Adjudicator’s Annual Report. That package will include measures to improve fairness and transparency.

Schools: Admissions

Jeff Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's press release, Parents to get greater say in the school admissions process of 25 January 2016, when her Department plans to launch its consultation on proposed revisions to the School Admissions Code.

Nick Gibb: We are currently considering what possible changes it would be appropriate to make to the School Admissions Code to support parents and schools, in addition to those that we have already announced. We will conduct a full public consultation in due course.

Schools: Greater London

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether school funding for (a) inner London boroughs and (b) outer London boroughs will decrease in the next financial year.

Mr Sam Gyimah: I can assure my Hon Friend that per pupil funding for a) inner London boroughs and b) outer London boroughs will not decline in the next financial year. The dedicated schools grant schools block is maintained at cash flat per pupil for the 2016 to 2017 financial year for all local authorities. In addition, the pupil premium is also maintained at the current per pupil amounts for the 2016 to 2017 financial year. As announced in the Chancellor’s spending review statement, we will introduce a national funding formula from 2017. We will consult on proposals later this year.

Pre-school Education: North West

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many people are employed in maintained nurseries in (a) Burnley, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The following table provides the full-time equivalent and head count number of workforce staff in service in local authority maintained nursery schools in Burnley parliamentary constituency, Lancashire local authority, North West region and England, November 2014. The figures are from the school workforce census and are the latest available. BurnleyLancashireNorth WestEnglandTotal regular FTE workforce[1]672337746,142Total regular head count workforce1822959928,327[1] Excludes occasional teachers and third party support staff.

English Baccalaureate

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the total number of students enrolled in the English Baccalaureate in each year since its inception; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Primary Education: Christchurch

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 23 February 2016 to Question 26625, on the Twynham Learning Federation, for what reason it is not possible to place the documents in the Library prior to publication on the Department's website in May.

Edward Timpson: As previously agreed, the application will be published alongside other successful direct free school applications in May 2016. This is in line with the established timetable of publishing applications three months after each announcement. However, the Secretary of State and Twynham Learning Federation have exceptionally agreed to also place a copy of the application and the decision letter signed by Sir David Carter, the former Regional Schools Commissioner for the South West in the House of Commons library. This will be done as soon as both commercially sensitive information and personal information, that may contravene the Data Protection Act, has been redacted. We will write to the Honourable Member when this has been done.

Ministry of Justice

Corruption

Mr Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress his Department has made on Action 36 of the UK Anti-Corruption plan, published in December 2014, relating to corporate criminal liability.

Mike Penning: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon. Friend the hon. Member for Gower on 28th September 2015, which can be found at: http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2015-09-09/9735/

Sexual Offences: Greater Manchester

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average time between (a) offence commission and charge, (b) charge and first court appearance and (c) first court appearance to sentencing or acquittal was for all sexual offences cases completed in Greater Manchester in (i) 2013, (ii) 2014 and (iii) 2015.

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to Tables 5.1 and 5.2 of the official statistics bulletin, An Overview of Sexual Offending in England and Wales, published on 10 January 2013, what the average number of days from offence to completion for sexual offence criminal proceedings for each offence type was in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average time between (a) offence commission and charge, (b) charge and first court appearance and (c) first court appearance to sentencing or acquittal was for all completed sexual offence cases in (i) 2013, (ii) 2014 and (iii) 2015.

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average time between (a) offence commission and charge, (b) charge and first court appearance and (c) first court appearance to sentencing or acquittal was for all completed sexual offences cases where the victim was (i) a minor and (ii) an adult in each year since 2013.

Mike Penning: Our courts system is in need of urgent reform, which is why we have committed to building a justice system that is swifter and more certain. We are investing £700 million over the next five years to create a more effective service. We will utilise modern technology to meet the needs of everyone who uses our services. MOJ do not hold figures on dates of sentencing or acquittals and have instead provided the time from first listing to completion. The age of a victim is only known where specified as part of the wording of an offence in statute. Figures for sexual offences cases where the victim was a minor are based on cases where the victim was known to be a minor, and figures where the victim was an adult include cases where the age of the victim was not known. Data included in the attached tables. Table 1 - the average duration from offence to charge, from charge to first listing, and from first listing to completion for sexual offences cases in Greater Manchester LCJB and in England and Wales, for cases completing in 2013, 2014 and January to September 2015. Table 2 – the average duration (days) between offence to charge, charge to first listing, and first listing to completion for sexual offence cases completed in England and Wales where the victim was a minor or an adult, 2013 to Q1-Q3 2015. Table 3 – the average durations for sexual offences cases in England and Wales. These are an update of Tables 5.1 and 5.2 in the ‘Overview of Sexual Offending in England and Wales’ publication. Figures are for the last 12 months available, from October 2014 to September 2015.



Table 1 + Table 2
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Table 3
(Excel SpreadSheet, 53 KB)

Medway Secure Training Centre: G4S

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 9 February 2016 to Question 22664, when those contract breaches took place; and with what procedures G4S failed to comply.

Andrew Selous: Pursuant to the response to PQ 22664, the two occasions on which financial remedies were applied took place between February and April 2015 and May and July 2015. G4S failed to comply with operational procedures, meaning that the number of incidents that took place was higher than the agreed level. Performance points are accrued when an incident or other custodial service failure occurs. Financial remedies are then applied when the total points exceeds the relevant performance baseline. A performance baseline is allowed in recognition of the complex operational nature of prisons where we know that there will be occasional incidents no matter how well the prison is run. This charge protocol is a longstanding practice in prison contracts.As the Justice Secretary said last month, the safety and welfare of all those in custody is vital. That is why an independent improvement board has been appointed to provide increased oversight, scrutiny and challenge of managerial arrangements at Medway, in particular in relation to the safeguarding of young people.

Prison Governors: Training

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which organisations have provided diversity and equality training to prison governors since 1 January 2012.

Andrew Selous: Equality and diversity training is accessed through the Civil Service Learning (CSL) suite of products. All Prison Governors have access to this learning offer. Prior to the availability of CSL, up until 31 March 2013 NOMS ran an in-house package for equality training that tackled inappropriate behaviour called ‘Challenge it, Change it’. This was available to all staff including Prison Governors. Equality and diversity consideration is a component of all business specific learning.

Hammersmith County Court: Closures

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many responses to his Department's consultation on the closure of Hammersmith Court were (a) in favour of and (b) against the closure.

Andrew Selous: The number of responses received on the proposal to close Hammersmith County Court (formally West London County Court) were (a) two in favour and (b) 14 against. The consultation response is available online at www.gov.uk/moj.

Feltham Young Offender Institution: Education

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average amount of time is a prisoner spends on education or work-related activities at Feltham Young Offenders Institution.

Andrew Selous: HMP&YOI Feltham is a split site which holds both young people (under 18’s) and young adults (18-20 year olds). The two cohorts are managed distinctly and there are separate education contracts and different providers for each. The Youth Justice Board oversees the management of the education contract for young people at Feltham. Prior to August 2015, education providers were only required to deliver 15 hours of education. In August 2015, we increased the requirement for education providers in public sector Young Offender Institutions (YOIs) to 27 hours of education a week, which is supplemented by 3 hours of physical exercise. Whist the majority of education time is protected, it is expected that young people will miss some lessons to attend appointments such as court appearances, medical appointments and legal visits. The following table provides the average number of classroom based education hours, alternative activities hours and physical education hours per week accessed by young people at Feltham YOI since 16 August 2015. EducationAverage hours per weekClassroom based learning13.99Alternative activities(1)7.72Physical education(2)1.43Total23.15 (1) Alternative activities include interventions relating to offending behaviour, focus groups, Release on Temporary licence etc.(2) Data is from 9 October only.This table does not include outreach education provision which is provided to young people who are not able to engage with class room based education.The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) and the Youth Justice Board are working with education providers to address delivery challenges and increase the number of education hours received by young people.

Prisons: Tools

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many loss of tool incidents have occurred in each prison establishment since May 2010.

Andrew Selous: Tool or implement losses are infrequent occurrences, however each one is taken seriously and subject to local investigation. The number of losses has remained stable over the last 10 years. The following table provides a breakdown of the number of tool or implement losses reported between May 2010 and January 2016. Tool/Implement loss incidents in prisons1, England and Wales, 2006 to 2015   2006200720082009201020112012201320142015Number of incidents284291282257246313261311295315   (1) Includes NOMS operated Immigration Removal Centres Data Sources and Quality These figures have been drawn from the NOMS Incident Reporting System. Care is taken when processing and analysing the returns but the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.   Note: These figures have been drawn from the NOMS Incident Reporting System. Care is taken when processing and analysing the returns but the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system. Although the figures are shown to the last case the figures may not be accurate to that level.

Prisons: Rape

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many rape incidents have occurred in each prison establishment in each month since May 2010.

Andrew Selous: NOMs collects data on all sexual assaults, but does not separate these into type of assault. Our annual Safety in Custody Statistical Bulletin contains information on the overall numbers of sexual assaults (see table 3.9 in the link https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/495430/safety-in-custody-assaults-dec-2014.xls). We are committed to running safe prisons. We treat any assault extremely seriously and are working hard to reduce levels of violence in our prisons.

Leader of the House

Leader of the House of Commons: Pay

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Leader of the House, what the average hourly earnings of (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of his Office were in each of the last five years.

Chris Grayling: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 26 February 2016, to Question UIN 26973.

Ministry of Defence

Military Police: Deployment

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many full-time equivalent personnel employed by the (a) Royal Military Police, (b) Royal Naval Police and (c) Royal Air Force Police were deployed on overseas operations in each of the last six years.

Mr Julian Brazier: The information requested is in the table below:  Financial Year 2009-102010-112011-122012-132013-142014-15Royal Naval Police102020202020Royal Military Police430420420470370270Royal Air Force Police470490500490450320 Note: All figures are rounded to nearest 10. UK Regulars are full time Service personnel, excluding Full Time Reserve Service (FTRS) personnel, Gurkhas, mobilised Reservists, Military Provost Guarding Service (MPGS), Locally Engaged Personnel (LEP), and Non Regular Permanent Service (NRPS). Overseas deployments are defined as personnel deployed outside the mainland UK’s borders; this includes other countries and British overseas territories. The figures provided include all military personnel mobilised for contingency operations, wartime operations, United Nations peacekeeping operations and humanitarian operations. Data only includes personnel who are deployed to an overseas location with an assigned country code. Totals are a count of unique individual personnel. Totals do not include repeat tours and each individual is only recorded once across each stated time period.

Islamic State: Military Intervention

Mr Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many RAF airstrikes have taken place against Daesh targets in (a) Iraq and (b) Syria since 2 December 2015.

Penny Mordaunt: From 2 December 2015 till 23 February 2016 there have been a total of 362 strikes against Daesh targets. Of these 319 have taken place in Iraq and 43 in Syria.

Veterans

Mr Jeffrey M. Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress his Department has made on the Gateway Project for armed forces veterans; and what plans he has to include Northern Ireland within the scope of that project.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence has explored options for the development of a veterans gateway service to provide a single cross-sector point of access for all veterans. The Armed Forces Covenant Reference Group has recently directed that the Covenant Fund prioritise funding for a pilot project to set up a 24 hours a day single point of contact veterans gateway service in financial year 2016-17 and this will be formally announced shortly. The project's reach will extend across the UK, including Northern Ireland.

Ministry of Defence: Overseas Aid

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much and what proportion of his Department's overseas development assistance budget his Department spent was subject to the International Development Act 2002 in each of the last three years.

Mr Julian Brazier: Ministry of Defence (MOD) expenditure on overseas development assistance is governed by the Supply and Appropriation Acts.MOD spending on overseas development assistance over the last three calendar years has been £3.0 million in 2013 and £2.2 million in 2014. The 2015 figure is currently undergoing an assurance process and is scheduled to be published on 1 April 2016. This expenditure has mainly been on humantarian assistance and defence education.

HMS Ocean: Helicopters

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Chinooks, (b) Sea King and (c) Lynx helicopters HMS Ocean carried on her most recent deployment.

Penny Mordaunt: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 3 February 2016 to Question 24276.http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-questions-answers/?page=1&max=20&questiontype=AllQuestions&house=commons%2clords&uin=24276



QnA extract on HMS Ocean Deployments
(Word Document, 15.19 KB)

Kurds: Military Aid

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2016 to Question 25590, whether his Department has received a request from the Kurdistan Regional Government for replacement ammunition rounds for British-gifted heavy machine guns; and if he will make a statement.

Penny Mordaunt: The Kurdish Regional Government has made a number of recent requests to Her Majesty's Government for further assistance, including for ammunition. These requests are currently under consideration and as set out in my Answer of 3 February 2016 to Question 25590. Should a decision be taken that we can provide further assistance, this would be notified to Parliament in the normal way.

Kurds: Military Aid

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the reasons are for the time taken to supply the Kurdistan Regional Government with new rounds for British machine guns.

Penny Mordaunt: We have previously provided some 50 tonnes of non-lethal support, 40 heavy machine guns and nearly half a million rounds of ammunition to the Kurdish Peshmerga. The Kurdish Regional Government has made a number of recent requests to Her Majesty's Government for further assistance, including for ammunition. These requests are currently under consideration to see whether we can assist, taking into account the UK's own requirements and stocks, and notifying Parliament in the normal way on assistance provided.

Department for Work and Pensions

Department for Work and Pensions: Pay

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average hourly earnings of (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of his Department were in each of the last five years.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department for Work and Pensions pays employees an annual salary rather than an hourly rate. The Department uses a grade structure to determine salary rates. The grade structure is underpinned by Job Evaluation and Grading Support (JEGS), an analytical job evaluation tool which meets all requirements of legislation and EHRC (Equality and Human Rights Commission) statutory codes of practice on Equal Pay. The use of JEGS and its application in determining the appropriate grade for a role enables us to determine where employees are doing equal work based on “work rated as equivalent”. DWP Equality data is published on an annual basis on https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-work-pensions/about/equality-and-diversity .This includes the average male and female pay for each year. In 2015, the gender pay gap in DWP was 3.7%. ONS reported that the mean gender pay gap within the UK was 19.2%, indicating that the gender pay gap within the DWP is considerably narrower than the UK gender pay gap. Part time employees receive a ‘pro-rated’ salary based on their working hours. Below, we have provided average salaries for part time employees based on the Full Time Equivalent (FTE) salary rate. 2015 Average FTE SalaryFull timePart time (FTE)£24,005£22,195 2014 Average FTE SalaryFull timePart time (FTE)£23,663£21,882 2013 Average FTE SalaryFull timePart time (FTE)£23,383£21,680 2012 Average FTE SalaryFull timePart time (FTE)£22,935£21,513 2011 Average FTE SalaryFull timePart time (FTE)£22,830£21,393 The main factor influencing the DWP gender and working pattern pay gap is the difference in distribution of staff within each of these groups across the grades. DWP continues to regularly review ways to address the pay gap.

Members: Correspondence

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he plans to reply to the letters from the hon. Member for Birkenhead (a) of 20 November 2015 on school holiday provision and (b) of 16 December 2015 on the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Hunger and Food Poverty's report of December 2014.

Justin Tomlinson: Despite an extensive search I am afraid the Department has no trace of the letter from 20 November 2015. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my Rt. Hon. Friend Mr Iain Duncan Smith, replied to the Rt.Hon. Member's letter of 16 December 2015 on 25 February 2016.

Bus Services: Blackpool

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason his Department decided not to renew funding of the extension of the Number 14 bus service to Peel Park.

Justin Tomlinson: The commitment at the time of the relocation of staff to Peel Park was to provide a bus service for three years. The cost of the current contract to provide the bus service is £216,955.50 per year and the actual usage of the service is low. Blackpool Transport have made it clear any new contract will be at an increased amount and a decision was made that it was not possible to justify public expenditure and subsidy on this scale. We are exploring alternatives which would offer better value for money, but no decision has yet been made.

Occupational Pensions

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people automatically enrolled into workplace pensions between October 2012 and October 2013 have since withdrawn from that scheme.

Justin Tomlinson: The Information requested is not routinely recorded for management information purposes and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.Research from 2013 shows that between nine and ten per cent of automatically enrolled workers had opted out of their pension scheme. Our latest figures show that since the roll out of automatic enrolment, nearly 6 million people have now been automatically enrolled, and opt outs have remained much lower than were originally anticipated. We expect that around nine million workers will be newly saving or saving more by 2018. The Department is doing further analysis into workplace pension participation and opt out rates.

Occupational Pensions

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that employees who initially opted out of the automatic enrolment into pension provision are informed of the importance of revising of their individual pension status.

Justin Tomlinson: Automatic enrolment has been a great success to date. Since the roll out of automatic enrolment, nearly 6 million people have been automatically enrolled into a workplace pension. Only 10% of individuals that have been automatically enrolled so far have chosen to opt out. This is one of the key indicators of the policy’s success in increasing participation in pension saving. Individuals who have opted out of automatic enrolment and have subsequently changed their mind can discuss with their employer how to opt back in. Furthermore, employers are required by law to automatically re-enrol eligible workers every three years. This prompts individuals to periodically reconsider their saving arrangements. Employers also have duties to provide certain information to their workers within prescribed time limits. In addition, the national communications campaign, Don’t Ignore the Workplace Pension, raises awareness of pension saving among both employees and employers, and promotes the idea that saving in a workplace pension is normal. The campaign directs individuals to the campaign website, The Pension Regulator’s website, and the relevant gov.uk website.

Flexible Support Fund: Children

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 19 November 2015 to Question 16115, if he will make it his policy to collect centrally data on Flexible Support Funding spent on childcare support.

Priti Patel: The Flexible Support Fund is used at the discretion of Jobcentre Plus District Managers and Work Coaches to support people back into work. Given this is a localised, discretionary fund we do not, and do not have plans to, create additional bureaucratic reporting on how the fund is spent.

Universal Credit: Telephone Services

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many calls have been made to the Universal Credit 03456000723 number to date; what the average duration is of such calls; what the average cost is of each call; and how much revenue in total has been generated by these calls.

Priti Patel: To date, 2.2million calls have been answered by Universal Credit agents. The average call duration is 07:29 minutes. This information includes calls to the 0345 number and to the 0845 number it replaced. Calls to 0345 numbers are charged to the customer at the same rate as a call to a standard local or national geographic number. The cost is dependent on the customer’s tariff and will be taken from inclusive bundled call minutes where applicable. Information about call charges are available at the following link https://www.gov.uk/call-charges. The Department generates no revenue from these calls and is unable to comment on revenue generated by other parties

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Information Officers

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many press and public relations staff are employed by (a) his Department, (b) Ofcom, (c) Royal Parks, (d) Arts Council England, (e) Sport England, (f) UK sport, (g) Visit Britain, (h) Visit England and (i) the Equality and Human Rights Commission; and how many of those employees are paid more than (i) £50,000 and (ii) £100,000; and what the total expenditure was on press and public relations by each of those orqanisations in the most recent for which figures are available.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The DCMS communications team is responsible for all public facing, digital and internal communications; this includes both managing day-to-day media enquiries and implementing proactive communications campaigns. Across Government communications teams, we saved £330 million for taxpayers last year compared with 2009 to 2010, by making our campaigns more cost effective, and reduced our communications spending by a total of £1 billion since 2010. The total expenditure on press and public relations for the financial year 2014/15 was £10,917,270.42. This figure includes staff costs and the costs for high profile publicity campaigns on Broadband Voucher and GO Superfast (broadband). DCMS currently employs 18.8 full time equivalents in communications - one of the smallest teams in Whitehall covering a departmental policy brief that has expanded in this Parliament. Of these, 7 are paid over £50,000 - but none more than £100,000. Other Bodies The sponsorship for the Equalities and Human Rights Commission transferred to the Department for Education from 30 September 2015. Press and PR functions are a matter for the Chief Executives of each of the bodies in question. They will write to the Honourable Member with this information, and copies of their letters will be placed in the libraries of both Houses

Code for America

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the role of the Code for America programme and its applicability to the UK.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The UK is one of the most advanced digital countries in the world. The Government is currently developing a Digital Strategy, to be published later this year, which will set out the actions we will take so we continue to lead the world in embracing the benefits of digital technology in our government, economy and society. The Government has provided support and engagement to Code for America through a series of visits and information sharing activities as it has developed its programme, and continues to work with relevant international organisations to share best practice as appropriate to support and promote the UK's status as a world leader in digital government.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Public Expenditure

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much his Department spent (a) in real terms and (b) as a share of departmental spending on (i) temporary agency staff, (ii) consultants, (iii) non-payroll staff, (iv) administration and (v) marketing and advertising for (A) 2010-11, (B) 2011-12, (C) 2012-13 and (D) 2014-15.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Figures on DCMS spend on temporary agency staff, consultants, administration for 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2014-15 can be found in the relevant DCMS Annual Reports and Accounts, which can be found here:2010-11: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dcms-annual-report-and-accounts-2010-112011-12: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dcms-annual-report-and-accounts-2011-122012-13: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dcms-annual-report-and-accounts-2013-142014-15: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dcms-annual-report-and-accounts-2014-15   No separate analysis is available for non-payroll staff.

Channel Four Television

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the value of Channel 4.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Government wants to ensure Channel 4 has a strong and secure future, and is looking at a broad range of options, including those put forward by channel 4. This work is ongoing.

Digital Accessibility Alliance

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many times the Digital Accessibility Alliance has met in each quarter since it was formed.

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what work the Digital Accessibility Alliance has completed or published since it was formed.

Mr Edward Vaizey: This Government recognises the importance of Digital Inclusion, and remains committed to seeing an improvement in the provision of digital information services for disabled people. Annual correspondence with the FTSE 100 companies has indicated that from 2013 to present there has been a steady increase in the number of companies that provide video relay. We welcome this positive progress, and public facing Government departments will continue to work with interested parties to ensure this continues.We have also been monitoring progress of the provision of access services for Video on Demand (VoD) content since 2013 through engagement with the Authority for Television on Demand (ATVOD), platform operators content providers and broadcasters.The Alliance for Digital Accessibility (formerly the Digital Accessibility Alliance), which has met twice since its formation, has created the environment for members to engage and discuss Accessibility issues.

British Telecom

Sir Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what obligations Openreach and BT have under contracts with the Government to provide prior warning to residents of planned maintenance or improvement work to junction boxes and other infrastructure that involves the temporary disconnection of services.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The same regulatory and communication code conditions apply to Openreach in BDUK contracted areas as would apply to their commercial deployment areas.The contracts between BT and government relating to broadband are for the provision of the design and build of infrastructure. Once this infrastructure is in place, it forms part of BT’s network and maintenance and improvement works will be carried out by Openreach in the same way as on the rest of the network. Although there is no obligation to inform residents of any planned upgrades or essential maintenance, these activities are scheduled to be carried out when usage is at its lowest, in order to minimise disruption.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to answer Question 23160 tabled on 19 January 2016, on the Code for America programme.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The PQ has now been answered.

Broadband

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether he or Ofcom have made an assessment or hold information on the proportion of BT's ducts that were able to have fibre blown through them without further civil works in the superfast broadband rollout.

Mr Edward Vaizey: BT and other suppliers with funding from BDUK are obliged to provide wholesale access to all new ducts and poles built using public subsidy, in line with the requirements of the BDUK European State aid approval. Ofcom has not conducted an assessment of the proportion of ducts that were able to have fibre blown through them without further civil works in the subsequent superfast broadband rollout. Ofcom does not hold any other information on the proportion of BT's ducts that were able to have fibre blown through them without further civil works.

Culture

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential effect of a UK withdrawal from the EU on cultural, sporting and media initiatives within the UK currently supported by the EU.

Mr Edward Vaizey: As the Prime Minister said in his statement to the House on Monday, the Government's view is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.

Culture

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in other EU member states on the potential effect of a UK withdrawal from the EU on cultural, sporting and media initiatives currently supported by the EU within the UK.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Ministers meet with a range of EU counterparts in the course of normal business. The Government's view is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.

Broadband

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2016 to Question 26900, if he will request that Ofcom publish an assessment of the extent to which the indicative assessment of BT's ducts in the report, Telecoms infrastructure access - sample survey of duct access, published in March 2009, was borne out in the subsequent rollout by BT of superfast broadband.

Mr Edward Vaizey: It is a matter for Ofcom as the independent regulator to consider whether the benefits of conducting and publishing such an assessment are proportionate to the costs.  On 25 February Ofcom published the initial conclusions of its Strategic Review of Digital Communications, including its strategy to promote large-scale roll-out of new ultrafast broadband networks. As part of that, Ofcom has said it will ask Openreach to provide a new database showing the physical location and characteristics of all of its ducts and poles, and to provide greatly improved systems and processes for access to them. This will allow competing operators to invest, plan and lay advanced networks. Ofcom will be working closely with industry to drive this forward over the coming months.

Broadband

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate his Department has made of the number of homes receiving fibre-optic broadband services in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) the UK in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Ofcom regularly publishes data on premises able to receive Next Generation Access broadband services and able to receive superfast broadband services (measured at 30+Mbit/s). Their most recent data, collected in May 2015, showed that AL:UK Next Generation Access (NGA) coverage of 90% and superfast coverage of 83%; that West Midlands region NGA coverage of 91% and superfast coverage of 86%; and Coventry NGA coverage of 91% and superfast coverage of 89%. The roll-out continues and the subsequent rise in superfast coverage will be reported by Ofcom in the next update later in 2016

Broadband

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate his Department has made of spending on infrastructure to support fibre-optic broadband installation in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Edward Vaizey: DCMS publishes official statistics on the Broadband Performance Indicator at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/broadband-performance-indicators with the latest numbers showing that BDUK grants to local authorities and budget transfers to devolved administrations amounted cumulatively to £406,918,848 to December 2015.

Ofcom

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment he has made of the capacity of Ofcom to protect the rights of internet service provider customers.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Ofcom is the independent communications regulator under the Communications Act 2003. It has a principal duty to protect end users and has in place general conditions for service providers for this purpose. Providers are also required to be a member of an approved alternative dispute resolution (ADR) scheme: http://consumers.ofcom.org.uk/complain/phone-and-broadband-complaints/adr. This ensures that complaints can be resolved and providers have to abide by any decisions made. Ofcom ensures that the ADR scheme operates in accordance with the criteria set out in the Communications Act, by monitoring to ensure the required standard is met. Ofcom’s Code of Practice for broadband speeds requires Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to provide clear and accurate information about broadband speeds, including maximum levels, estimated speed and factors that may slow it down such as fair usage, or traffic management policies. ISPs are required to have in place systems, which find the cause of speed problems, take steps to fix issues and explain if they can do anything to improve the situation. Also, consumers can terminate their contracts at any time without penalty, if they receive speeds significantly below the minimum guaranteed access line speed.

Broadband

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what further assistance his Department plans to give the devolved legislatures for providing access to higher speed broadband services.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Superfast broadband is available to nearly 90 per cent of homes and businesses in the UK, and we are on track to reach 95% by the end of 2017, as set out in our manifesto All of the BDUK superfast broadband contracts with BT contain a claw-back mechanism so that as take-up rises above a set level of 20%, further funding is reinvested in extending coverage, which all the nations will benefit from, including Northern Ireland. In November, the Prime Minister announced the Government’s intention to implement a new broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) and our ambition is to set this at 10 Mbps. This will give people the legal right to request an affordable broadband connection from a designated provider, up to a reasonable cost threshold, no matter where they live. We are also piloting a range of alternative technology approaches to help us understand the options for extending superfast broadband further. We are also encouraging commercial suppliers to meet their commitments to provide further coverage who are themselves investing in new technology to extend coverage.

Arts: Finance

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which arts organisations have received public funding of more than £5 million in the last three years.

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which arts organisations have been allocated capital grants of more than £5 million in the last three years.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The Arts Council publishes data on the organisations that have received regular funding and capital funding on their website: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/funding/apply-funding/apply-for-funding/capital-investment-2015-18/large-capital-grants/"

Broadband

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment (a) his Department and (b) Ofcom has made of the number of (a) business parks which do not have superfast broadband and (b) businesses based in business parks which do not have superfast broadband.

Mr Edward Vaizey: In its 2015 publication Connected Nations, Ofcom estimated that 68% of SMEs had access to superfast broadband in May 2015, and almost half (around 130,000) in certain business areas were unable to receive speeds above 10Mbit/s. The Government is supporting investment to provide superfast broadband coverage to 90% of UK premises by early 2016 and 95% by December 2017. In addition, BDUK's Connection Voucher Scheme issued around 55,000 vouchers to businesses to enable to access Superfast broadband. However, this does not include the provision of leased lines which offer an alternative connectivity option for businesses.

Home Office

Social Networking: Children

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of children (a) under 16 and (b) between 16 and 18 who have been groomed on social media sites in each year since 2010.

Karen Bradley: Significant under-reporting of online grooming is likely and it is therefore difficult fully to quantify numbers. The National Strategic Assessment of Serious and Organised Crime, issued by the National Crime Agency, recognises child sexual exploitation and abuse as one of the highest serious and organised crime risks and the Home Office has published a review of the evidence on cybercrime, including online grooming (Cyber Crime: A Review of the Evidence Research Report 75. Chapter 3: Cyber-enabled crimes - sexual offending against children, McGuire and Dowling 2013).

Cybercrime: North West

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people were victims of online fraud in (a) Burnley, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West in each year since 2010.

Mr John Hayes: The Home Office does not hold data centrally on the number of victims of online frauds committed annually.The Office for National Statistics recently published a provisional estimate of 5.1 million fraud offences a year in England and Wales, based on trial data from the Crime Survey for England and Wales. This did not include details of how many fraud offences were online or on the number of victims of online fraud.The ONS also published the number of frauds referred to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) in the year to September 2015 – 604,601. It is not possible to establish how many of these were online.

Proceeds of Crime

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what receipts were received by each police force from the proceeds of crime in 2015.

Mr John Hayes: More assets were taken off criminals in 2014/15 than ever before. £199 million was recovered, and hundreds of millions more was frozen and put beyond the reach of criminals. The table below shows the total receipts from cash forfeited by each police force, and receipts from confiscation orders in the financial year 1 April 2014-31 March 2015.The table includes data for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. However, the figures for the Police Service of Northern Ireland are for cash forfeitures only, as under the devolution settlement, all confiscation receipts are retained by Northern Ireland, and the Home Office holds no data. Police ForceTotal receipts from cash forfeiture orders and confiscation orders in the year 2014-15 Avon & Somerset Constabulary£1,490,611.90Bedfordshire Police£1,094,410.68British Transport Police£556,348.90Cambridgeshire Constabulary£720,660.84Cheshire Constabulary£2,484,655.12City of London Police£2,555,229.61Cleveland Police£556,308.05Cumbria Constabulary£1,135,771.58Derbyshire Constabulary£676,892.51Devon & Cornwall Constabulary£1,398,001.79Dorset Police£275,603.19Durham Constabulary£739,926.17Dyfed-Powys Police£196,955.52Essex Police£1,636,232.98Gloucestershire Constabulary£1,321,446.18Greater Manchester Police£6,823,306.05Gwent Police£755,622.39Hampshire Constabulary£1,357,509.31Hertfordshire Constabulary£1,895,544.77Humberside Police£1,009,594.15Kent Police£1,710,364.42Lancashire Constabulary£2,125,492.14Leicestershire Constabulary£1,462,857.28Lincolnshire Police£440,109.19Merseyside Police£3,971,554.79Metropolitan Police Service£23,518,346.51Norfolk Constabulary£605,485.18North Wales Police£555,579.35North Yorkshire Police£395,279.48Northamptonshire Police£1,607,162.05Northumbria Police£827,194.86Nottinghamshire Police£924,929.87Police Service of Northern Ireland£521,050.22South Wales Police£1,313,813.78South Yorkshire Police£1,666,790.98Staffordshire Police£1,099,376.89Suffolk Constabulary£939,571.40Surrey Police£1,081,929.13Sussex Police£1,089,285.30Thames Valley Police£834,890.14Warwickshire Police£263,041.41West Mercia Constabulary£698,110.14West Midlands Police£4,689,385.89West Yorkshire Police£5,062,763.87Wiltshire Constabulary£430,894.47

Vetting: Fraud

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to protect the public from fraudulent organisations presenting themselves as Disclosure and Barring Service umbrella body companies seeking personal data.

Karen Bradley: Registered/Umbrella Bodies are governed by a Code of Practice, set out in Part V of the Police Act 1997, which includes the handling of personal data. Failure to comply with the Code of Practice may result in the suspension or cancellation of the umbrella body’s registration. In addition the Disclosure and Barring Service undertakes robust checks to ensure that its authorised Registered/Umbrella Bodies have appropriate safeguards in place to protect the personal data of people they are representing.

Care Homes: Electrical Safety

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of mandatory electrical safety checks in care homes.

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment her Department has undertaken of the electrical safety and adequacy of measures to prevent electrical fires in care homes in England.

Mike Penning: Fire safety in care homes is the responsibility of the operator who is required under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 to assess the risk from fire to residents and employees and to implement appropriate fire precautions to prevent fires and mitigate the risk that, should a fire break out, lives are not put at risk. This would include mitigating the risk of and from electrical fires.The Government’s fire safety risk assessment guidance for residential care premises provides detailed advice on ensuring electrical equipment is safe, and is inspected regularly by a competent electrical engineer in accordance with the Electricity at Work Regulations.It is for local fire and rescue authorities to determine whether the specific fire precautions and management and maintenance arrangements in place in any particular residential care premises are sufficient to comply with the provisions of the Order.

Crime: Mental Illness

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many crimes in (a) England and Wales, (b) London and (c) each London borough were related to or caused by some kind of mental health issue in each year since 2010.

Mike Penning: The Home Office does not hold data centrally on the number of crimes related to or caused by mental health issues. The Home Office receives data from police forces in England and Wales which show the number of offences recorded. It is not possible to determine which of these were related to or caused by any type of mental health issue.

Police Stations: Nurses

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many recorded incidents there were of no custody nurses being available in police stations when required in each year since 2010.

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the custody nurse vacancy rate was in (a) total and (b) each London borough in the Metropolitan Police area on 1 January of each year since 2010.

Mike Penning: The provision and commissioning of police custody healthcare services including custody nurses is the responsibility of individual Police and Crime Commissioners, and healthcare staffing levels are an operational policing matter in conjunction with the custody healthcare service provider. Information on these issues is not held centrally by the Home Office.

Scotland Office

North Sea Oil

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if the Prime Minister will make it his policy to devolve responsibilities for the North Sea oil industry to the Scottish Government.

David Mundell: The UK Government does not intend to devolve responsibility for the North Sea oil industry.The Smith Commission Agreement, agreed by all of Scotland’s main parties, was clear on the powers that would be devolved to the Scottish Parliament and Scottish Ministers, and the Scotland Bill, currently before Parliament, delivers these powers in full.The Smith Commission agreed that all aspects of the taxation of oil and gas receipts and the licensing of offshore oil and gas extraction would remain reserved.

HM Treasury

Taxation

Philip Davies: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the effects of the tax treatment of interest payments on tax revenues.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs publishes data on income tax liabilities which includes tax on savings: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-tax-liabilities-by-taxpayers-marginal-rate Table 2.6 shows that total tax liabilities on savings income in 2015-16 is expected to be £2,324m. These estimates are based on the 2012-13 Survey of Personal Incomes. They are projected to 2015-16 using economic assumptions consistent with the Office for Budget Responsibility’s March 2015 economic and fiscal outlook. Savings income is not exclusively interest as it includes other forms of income such as bond yield and purchased life annuity payments. On 6 April 2016, a tax-free Personal Savings Allowance (PSA) will be introduced for savings income (such as interest) paid to individuals. Broadly, this means that basic rate taxpayers will be able to receive up to £1,000 of savings income, and higher rate taxpayers can receive up to £500 of savings income, without any tax being due. The PSA will not be available to any saver with additional rate income. No overall assessment of the implications of the tax treatment of interest payments on tax revenues, across the various taxes, is available.

Tax Evasion

Caroline Lucas: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2016 to Question 20496, how many people were (a) prosecuted and (b) convicted of offences relating to (i) corporation tax, (ii) income tax, national insurance contributions, capital gains tax and inheritance tax and (iii) other tax-related offences in each financial year since 2010-11.

Mr David Gauke: The information is not held in the format requested. To provide the answers would incur disproportionate cost since the prosecution and conviction data has been captured centrally in alternative categories.

Treasury: Fringe Benefits

Philip Davies: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many staff in his Department and non-departmental public bodies receive (a) home to work travel allowance, (b) a car allowance and (c) subsidised health insurance.

Damian Hinds: None, with the exception of 14 employees of Infrastructure UK who retain a contractual right to receive subsidised health insurance.

Taxation: Self-assessment

Julian Knight: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has conducted an impact assessment on proposals to require small businesses and self-employed people to complete quarterly digital tax returns by 2020.

Mr David Gauke: I refer the Honourable Member to my answer of 1st February 2016, Written Question No. 23775. http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2016-01-22/23775/] In addition, while speaking in Westminster Hall on 25th January 2016, I assured the House that HM Revenue and Customs would produce an initial draft impact assessment alongside the formal consultation process, which will start this spring. As with any other tax measure, a detailed assessment of the impact on administrative burdens will be published alongside draft legislation.

Licensing: Fees and Charges

John Mann: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an assessment of the effect on the public purse of the transfer of licence fee rates tax receipts to devolved city region authorities.

Greg Hands: No such assessment has been made.

Fringe Benefits: Tax Allowances

Steve Rotheram: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the average annual change in tax relief for a person employed via an employment intermediary as a result of the Government's proposed changes to income tax relief for travel and subsistence.

Mr David Gauke: I refer the honourable gentleman to the Tax Information and Impact Note published at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/income-tax-employment-intermediaries-and-relief-for-travel-and-subsistence/income-tax-employment-intermediaries-and-relief-for-travel-and-subsistence.

Investment Income: Taxation

Caroline Lucas: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the HM Revenue and Customs policy paper, Income tax: changes to dividend taxation, published in December 2015, if he will publish the data and calculations used as the basis for the statement that 95 per cent of all taxpayers will either gain or be unaffected by changes to dividend taxes.

Mr David Gauke: The HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) policy paper “Income Tax: changes to dividend taxation” sets out the estimated impacts of the reforms to dividend taxation announced in Summer Budget 2015. At Summer Budget 2015, the Chancellor announced that the dividend tax credit will be replaced by a new £5,000 tax-free dividend allowance from April 2016 and that dividend tax rates would be amended from the same date. The tax base comprises dividend income subject to income tax, estimated using the Survey of Personal Incomes and other HMRC administrative data, and projected in line with OBR determinants. This is used to calculate the number of affected persons. An explanation of the methodology can be found in the Summer Budget 2015 policy costings document:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/443195/Policy_costings_summer_budget_2015.pdf

Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme

Craig Mackinlay: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many Seed Enterprise Investment Schemes HM Revenue and Customs have (a) registered and (b) approved in each financial year since 6 April 2012.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not currently publish information on the number of Seed Enterprise Investment Schemes applications received and accepted. Official statistics on the number of companies raising funds, the number of subscriptions and amounts raised under SEIS in 2012-13 and 2013-14 are available to view at www.gov.uk/government/statistics/enterprise-and-seed-enterprise-investment-schemes-january-2016. The first official statistics for 2014-15 will be published in April 2016, alongside statistics for the Enterprise Investment Scheme. HMRC plans to publish new statistics within this release on the number of companies applying for the scheme and the number of those who are successful.

Self-employed: Owner Occupation

Susan Elan Jones: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to support self-employed people who want to buy their own home.

Harriett Baldwin: The Government is committed to making the aspiration of home ownership a reality for as many households as possible. At the Spending Review the Government announced a series of measures which will help people become homeowners. These include plans to deliver 200,000 Starter Homes and 135,000 Shared Ownership homes; increasing the value of Help to Buy equity loans in London to 40% from 25% and extending the Help to Buy: Equity Loan scheme for a further year to 2021. These schemes are also supported by the Help to Buy: ISA, through which the Government tops up mortgage deposit savings for first time buyers by up to £3,000. Decisions around the availability of individual mortgage loans are commercial decisions for lenders, including what evidence is required to validate income. The Government does not seek to intervene in these decisions.

Self-employed: Mortgages

Susan Elan Jones: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to improve access to mortgages for self-employed people.

Harriett Baldwin: The Government is committed to ensuring that the mortgage market delivers for creditworthy borrowers. On 1 December 2015 the Government launched the Help to Buy: ISA to help all first time buyers saving for their first home. Beyond the requirements set out in the regulations, decisions around the availability of individual mortgage loans are commercial decisions for lenders, including what evidence is required to validate income. The Government does not seek to intervene in these decisions.

Tax Avoidance: Self-employed

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many investigations have been opened by HM Revenue and Customs under IR35 in the last two years.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) opened 216 interventions under IR35 in the year 2013/14 and 199 in the year 2014/15. HMRC has increased the number of IR35 inquiries in recent years and has at least 250 open at any one time.The Government published a discussion document on 17 July 2015, inviting views on options for reforming IR35. The discussion period closed on 30 September and the Government will announce next steps in due course.

Solar Power: VAT

Melanie Onn: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of whether a five per cent VAT rate could continue to apply to solar PV and solar thermal within the terms of the EU's VAT directive and the judgment of the European Court of Justice on that matter.

Mr David Gauke: The Government has recently consulted on this matter, the results of which will be announced shortly.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Energy: Companies

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the Which? 2016 energy satisfaction survey, what steps she is taking to ensure the big six energy companies improve their customer service as well as reduce their prices.

Andrea Leadsom: It is important we have a vibrant, dynamic competitive energy market where energy companies work hard to attract customers though customer service as well as price. There are now 31 independent suppliers in the domestic retail energy market, up from 7 in 2010. Switching from a standard tariff to the best fixed, direct debit deal on the market, many people could save around £200 – and some could save more. During 2015, 3.8 million domestic customers switched electricity supplier and 2.8 million customers switched gas supplier. The Competition and Markets Authority are nearing the end of their enquiry into the energy markets. We are determined to do whatever it takes to ensure markets work well for consumers. In the meantime, the Department will be working with Ofgem, the Ombudsman Service and Citizens Advice to make sure that the consumer complaints services are working for consumers and identifying systemic industry wide problems to improve customer service.

National Grid

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether she has made an assessment of the potential effect on UK GDP of the National Grid issuing Notification of Inadequate System Margin notices; and if she will make a statement.

Andrea Leadsom: A NISM is a notification issued to the electricity market to ask power stations to make more generation available for a short, specified, period of time. It doesn't mean demand is about to outstrip supply, only that National Grid would like a larger cushion of spare capacity in the short term. DECC has not made an assessment of the impact of NISMS on GDP. There have been 2 NISMs since 2010 and these have only lasted a few hours on each occasion and have had virtually no impact on consumer bills.

National Grid

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether she has made an assessment of the potential effect on UK GDP of the National Grid using its demand side balancing reserve powers; and if she will make a statement.

Andrea Leadsom: Demand Side Balancing Response (DSBR) is part of National Grid’s Contingency Balancing Reserve. Under the DSBR, firms bid for contracts to reduce their demand from the grid when instructed by National Grid in return for an agreed utilisation fee. DECC has not made an assessment of the impact of DSBR on GDP; DSBR is small (133 MW in 15/16), runs infrequently and is entirely voluntary. Since the service commenced in winter 14/15, National Grid has only instructed on one occasion, instructing a total of 42.9MW, for which participants were paid a pre-contracted utilisation fee.

Nuclear Power Stations: Carbon Emissions

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she has made an assessment of the potential effect on carbon dioxide emissions of the life extension of nuclear reactors compared with the use of (a) coal and (b) gas-powered electricity plants producing the same amount of electricity over the same period.

Andrea Leadsom: Holding answer received on 24 February 2016



Our existing modelling estimates that in total, 187 TWh of electricity would be generated from the four nuclear plants whose lives have been extended in the period 2019 to 2030; this would lead to 0 MtCO2 emissions. By comparison, approximately 71 MtCO2 would be emitted from 187 TWh of electricity generated from gas CCGT; or 165 MtCO2 if generated from unabated coal. Like nuclear, it is estimated that around 0 MtCO2 would be emitted from the equivalent generation from onshore wind, offshore wind or solar power. We have not performed exact modelling analysis on the impact that life extension decisions would have on carbon dioxide emissions because the reduction in emissions will depend on which generation technologies contribute to overall generation and the share of each. The mix in addition to nuclear could include a combination of coal, gas or low-carbon technologies.

Electricity Generation

Mr Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the report, The Size and Performance of the UK Low Carbon Economy, published in March 2015, whether estimates of gross value added for electricity generation include (a) the value of renewable obligation certificates and (b) the element of the feed-in tariff and Contract for Difference prices which are above the market price of energy.

Andrea Leadsom: The report on the Size and Performance of the UK Low Carbon Economy is based on a bottom-up analysis of company accounts from those businesses participating in the sector. The report estimates gross value added within the sector by taking gross profit less the sum of employment costs, depreciation and amortisation. This definition is consistent with the approach generally taken in official statistics as a measure of the value of goods and services produced in an area, industry or sector of an economy. To the extent they are included within company accounts, the report captures the value of renewable obligation certificates and the element of the feed-in tariff which is above the market price of energy. However, this will exclude payments to householders and other non-business or charity electricity generators. No element of Contracts for Difference (CfDs) will be included in the estimates as the report only covers the period 2010 to 2013, before the introduction of CfDs.

Department for Energy and Climate Change: Overseas Aid

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much and what proportion of her Department's overseas development assistance budget her Department spent was subject to the International Development Act 2002 in each of the last three years.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has spent the following amounts of Official Development Assistance (ODA) over the past three years Year201320142015Total ODA£408.4m£192.4m£336mAmount under the International Development Act 2002£402.8m£187.7m£328.2m% under the International Development Act 200298.6%97.5%97.6% The spend that is under the International Development Act 2002 comes from the UK’s International Climate Fund (ICF) and the ODA-eligible proportion of the annual subscription to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. The remaining DECC ODA spend is the ODA-eligible proportion of the annual subscriptions relating to the International Atomic Energy Agency. This spend is governed by the Supply and Appropriation Act; we seek to ensure this expenditure is consistent with the aims of the International Development Act.

Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme

Angus Brendan MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether her Department has undertaken a value-for-money assessment for gas absorption heat pumps for inclusion within the Renewable Heat Incentive; and if she will place in the Library a copy of such an assessment.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Renewable Energy

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will publish an updated set of Levy Control Framework projections.

Andrea Leadsom: The Office for Budget Responsibility published updated Levy Control Framework (LCF) spend projections alongside the Spending Review on 25 November and we anticipate they will publish an update alongside the March budget. The Department will publish further details on the LCF projections in due course.

Renewable Energy

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what evidential basis was used when calculating the latest forecasts for the Levy Control Framework.

Andrea Leadsom: We use a range of assumptions when updating Levy Control Framework (LCF) forecasts. Strike prices for signed Contracts for Difference are available on the Low Carbon Contracts Company website. Renewable Obligation and Feed in Tariff Scheme deployment data is published monthly on the Renewable Energy Planning Database and Ofgem’s website respectively: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/renewable-energy-planning-database-monthly-extracthttps://www.renewablesandchp.ofgem.gov.uk/Public/ReportManager.aspx?ReportVisibility=1&ReportCategory=0. The publication of the Renewables Obligation 2016/17 outlined the methodology for deriving some of the LCF’s key assumptions: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/464685/Renewables_Obligation_Level_Calculations_for_2016-17.pdf A similar approach is taken for FiTs and CfD assumptions, and with interim adjustments made to reflect the latest commercial, technical, and policy specific information available to DECC. Assumptions on wholesale prices used in the LCF projections that were published alongside the autumn Spending Review were consistent with the wholesale fossil fuel, electricity, and carbon prices scenarios published as part of the updated Energy and Emissions Projections in November 2015, and are set out in Annex M at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/477625/Annex-m-price-growth-assumptions.xls.

Renewable Energy: Yorkshire and the Humber

Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what information her Department holds on the number of people employed in the (a) wind and (b) solar energy sector in Yorkshire and the Humber in each of the last 10 years.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Business Innovation and Skills published a report in March 2015 on “The Size and Performance of the UK Low Carbon Economy”. This contains estimates of the number of people employed directly within different sectors of the low carbon economy, and in their supply chains: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/low-carbon-economy-size-and-performance. The report estimates that for 2013 in Yorkshire and Humber there were 2,900 people employed in the solar photovoltaics sector, with equivalent estimates of 2,100 and 500 for the onshore and offshore wind sectors respectively. These figures include those directly employed by firms in the sector, and resulting jobs within the supply chain. One thousand new jobs will be created in Hull at Siemens’ offshore wind manufacturing plant which is due to be operational from 2017 and will also create additional jobs in the supply chain.

Renewable Energy: Yorkshire and the Humber

Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the level of installed capacity was for (a) wind and (b) solar energy in Yorkshire and the Humber in each of the last 10 years.

Andrea Leadsom: The level of installed capacity for wind and solar PV in Yorkshire and the Humber, for the ten years to 2014, is given in the attached table. Data for 2015 will be available on 29 September, 2016. 



Regional Renewable Statistics Installed Capacity 
(Word Document, 14.16 KB)

Tidal Power

Mr Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what her Department's policy is on the future development of tidal lagoons in the UK.

Andrea Leadsom: The Government recognises the potential that exists in harnessing tidal energy around the coastline of the UK. That is why we are commissioning an independent strategic review to assess the case for tidal lagoons and consider whether they could represent value for money for the consumer. Government will carefully consider the recommendations from the review before making decisions on future development of tidal lagoons.

Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office: Fringe Benefits

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many staff in his Department and non-departmental public bodies receive (a) home to work travel allowance, (b) a car allowance and (c) subsidised health insurance.

Philip Davies: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many staff in 10 Downing Street receive (a) home to work travel allowance, (b) a car allowance and (c) subsidised health insurance.

Matthew Hancock: The Prime Minister’s office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office.No staff receive a home to work travel allowance or a car allowance. Health insurance is not a benefit offered to staff however, due to a TUPE transfer where Cabinet Office brought staff in from the private sector there a smaller number of staff able to claim subsidised health insurance.

Cabinet Office: Pay

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the average hourly earnings of (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of his Department were in each of the last five years.

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the average hourly earnings of (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of 10 Downing Street were in each of the last five years.

Matthew Hancock: The information is not available.

Cabinet Office: Meetings

Helen Goodman: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what meetings (a) he and (b) Ministers of his Department have had with (i) arms manufacturers, (ii) tobacco manufacturers and (iii) representatives of the Israeli embassy since the period covered in his Department's most recent ministerial gifts, hospitality, travel and meetings data release.

Matthew Hancock: Departments publish details of Ministers meetings' with external organisations routinely on www.Gov.uk.Details of meetings held during the period October – December 2015 will be published in due course.

Senior Civil Servants: Political Impartiality

Louise Haigh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance his Department provides to senior civil servants on speaking at public events.

Louise Haigh: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance his Department issues to senior civil servants attending events organised by hon. Members of the Government party.

Matthew Hancock: All civil servants are subject to the requirements of the Civil Service Code and Civil Service Management Code. Further guidance on attendance at external events including those organised by political parties can be found in the Directory of Civil Service Guidance (vol 2).

Cervical Cancer: Young People

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many women have died from primary cervical cancer at the age of (a) 20, (b) 21, (c) 22, (d) 23, (e) 24 and (f) 25 in each year since 2003.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Letter to Member - Cervical Cancer Deaths
(PDF Document, 78.46 KB)

Prime Minister

UK Trade and Investment

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Prime Minister, how many meetings he has had with UK Trade and Investment trade envoys since May 2015.

Mr David Cameron: I have to-date appointed 24 Trade Envoys who are MPs and Peers from across the political spectrum to represent the UK in 50 countries. They are parliamentarians from a range of backgrounds and I receive regular feedback from them on their work in promoting the UK in trade and investment matters. Further details of the Trade Envoy programme can be found on the gov.uk website.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Flood Control: West Yorkshire

Jo Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what funding her Department plans to make available for flood defences along the River Calder and its tributaries in West Yorkshire in each of the next five years.

Rory Stewart: The following table shows the currently projected Grant in Aid over the next five years for measures to reduce flood risk along the River Calder and its tributaries in West Yorkshire. As the costs of some of the repairs following the recent floods are still to be finalised, these figures will increase accordingly. Grant in Aid in £k2016/172017/182018/192019/202020/211,2169231,2697842,653 Schemes were allocated funding based on nationally consistent criteria. The position of a scheme in the programme depends on the availability and timing of contributions and how its appraisal or design are progressing. The projected funding had been allocated in current spending plans. The Government’s National Flood Resilience Review will re-examine worst case extreme weather scenarios and the resulting potential flood impacts across the country.

Animal Welfare: Circuses

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to bring forward proposals to ban the use of wild animals in circuses.

George Eustice: A ban on the use of wild animals in travelling circuses is a manifesto commitment and will be introduced as soon as parliamentary time allows. In the interim, the welfare of any wild animals still being used by travelling circuses in England is protected by the Welfare of Wild Animals in Travelling Circuses (England) Regulations 2012. During the 2015 circus touring season, 18 wild animals were licensed by Defra under the Regulations for use by two circuses.

Common Agricultural Policy

Mrs Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much the UK paid to the EU for agricultural levies in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

George Eustice: UK Contributions to the EU budget are set out in Table C3 of HM Treasury publication “European Union Finances 2015: statement on the 2015 EU Budget and measures to counter fraud and financial mismanagement” in December 2015. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/483344/EU_finances_2015_final_web_09122015.pdf The contribution from sugar levies for the previous 5 years were: 2010: £8m2011: £8m2012: £10m2013: £9m2014: £2m

Clean Growth Ministerial Group

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2016 to Question 26611, whether the Clean Growth Committee has met to discuss air quality.

Rory Stewart: The inter-Ministerial group on Clean Growth considers issues relating to air quality and decarbonisation where these have a cross-Departmental aspect. To protect the integrity of the policy making process, we do not comment on what was discussed at a specific meeting.

Squirrels: Conservation

Melanie Onn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support the growth of the red squirrel population.

Rory Stewart: The Government is committed to protecting and expanding red squirrel populations and tackling the threats that grey squirrels pose to them.Since December 2014 the Forestry Commission has been undertaking a number of actions to protect red squirrels from the impact of grey squirrels resulting from an updated grey squirrel action plan for England. These have included measures to control grey squirrels in red squirrel areas, through forestry options under Countryside Stewardship and the previous English Woodland Grant Scheme.Additionally, the Government participates in and supports Red Squirrels Northern England, a partnership project between the Red Squirrel Survival Trust, Natural England, the Forestry Commission and the Wildlife Trusts, which is helping to protect and expand the biggest population of red squirrels left in England.We are also working together with a range of stakeholders under the UK Squirrel Accord, which aims to promote partnership working to increase public awareness and support for action to protect red squirrels and woodlands from grey squirrels.

Dairy Farming

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to encourage more milk processors to comply with the voluntary code on milk contracts.

George Eustice: The dairy industry code of best practice on contractual arrangements was created in Great Britain in 2012 in response to concern about fluctuating milk prices. About 85% of producers have signed up to it. There is general acceptance that the code's introduction has led to some improvement for milk producers.Ultimately, the code is voluntary and owned by the industry. However, this is something that I regularly discuss with the NFU and Dairy UK with a view to encouraging other, primarily smaller processors to sign up.

Labelling: Codes of Practice

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to facilitate the development of an improved labelling code in the UK.

George Eustice: The Food Information Regulations (No. 1855) were introduced in 2014 and has resulted in better and more consistent labelling of food in a number of areas, including allergen labelling, ingredients labelling and, from the end of this year, nutrition labelling.Origin labelling is also improved by these Regulations with new rules on origin labelling of meat of poultry, sheep, goat and pigs introduced in April last year. In addition, we look forward to prospective implementing acts on origin labelling of ingredients of foods, including meat and dairy, where this is different from the place that the food itself was made. The Government is fully engaged in these discussions and expects them to result in improved labelling of meat and dairy products in due course.We have been pressing for mandatory origin labelling on dairy products, in particular lightly processed dairy products such as butter, cheese and cream but have met with some resistance from the European Commission. We will continue to press for these improvements..

Dairy Farming

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will carry out a review of UK dairy processing capacity.

George Eustice: Dairy processors have undertaken a sustained high level of investment in the UK. In recent years, capital investment by the top five dairy organisations in the UK has regularly exceeded £100m per annum. In total, over the period March 2006 to 2013, capital expenditure by these organisations exceeded £1.2bn.It is important to continue to encourage high quality inward investment from around the world to boost security and growth. UKTI, the Great British Food Unit and Dairy UK are hosting a senior delegation of dairy companies from China in March 2016. These companies are interested in building stronger relations with British counterparts whether through the development of direct imports of finished products into China, collaboration on ingredients and processing, or joint ventures.

Dairy Products: Exports

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps she has taken to support and develop the export potential of UK dairy through the Dairy Exports Strategy.

George Eustice: There is great global demand for quality British dairy products and we are working to maximise this opportunity by opening up new markets around the world. Eight dairy companies accompanied the Secretary of State on a trade mission to China in November, and next month a Chinese dairy delegation is visiting to discuss opportunities for investment in our domestic industry.Further trade missions are planned over the coming months to the US, Japan and China. Together with UKTI we will continue to promote our fantastic British dairy brand.

Department of Health

Organs: Donors

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had on presumed consent for organ donations in England.

Jane Ellison: There have been no such recent discussions although this subject has been discussed during debates on organ donation. Our efforts remain focussed on the delivery of the seven year United Kingdom-wide organ donation and transplantation strategy published by NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) on 11 July 2013. We are taking specific action to encourage registration on the Organ Donor Register, to promote discussion within families about donation and to increase consent rates to organ donation, particularly raising awareness of donation in the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) population. Organ donation rates are 62% and transplant rates some 44% higher than they were in 2008. This has been achieved mainly through a strengthening of the donation infrastructure, by increasing the number of specialist nurses and by improving retrieval arrangements.

Soft Drinks: Sugar

Gavin Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of measures intended to curtail consumption of high sugar drinks on levels of consumption of drinks that require significant levels of added sugar to counteract their high acidity.

Jane Ellison: In its 2015 Carbohydrates and Health report the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition recommended that the consumption of sugary soft drinks should be minimised by children and adults. Such drinks do not need to contain added sugar; there are many alternatives on the market which contain artificial sweeteners instead. Public Health England’s (PHE) report Sugar reduction: The evidence for action (October 2015), outlined its assessment of a range of measures that could be implemented to reduce sugar intakes and improve diets overall. As part of their assessment of the evidence, PHE conducted an analysis of the impact on sugar intakes in adults and children of reducing the sugar content of eight food categories, including sugary soft drinks.

Maternity Services

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to raise awareness among parents of the six-week postnatal check.

Jane Ellison: All pregnant women are informed about the mandated six week post-natal check by health visitors at their ante-natal visit (around 28 weeks of pregnancy) and at the post-birth review by the health visitor (at 10-14 days following delivery). At this time there is also a general practitioner check for both mother and baby. Public Health England’s Start4Life Information Service for Parents provides help and advice to encourage new and expectant parents to develop behaviours that support a healthy pregnancy and healthy start for children, including the maintenance of parental health. This subscription email and text service sends an email to all new subscribed mothers when their baby is five weeks old to advise them that their six week post natal check is due. The email includes a link to further online content – text and video - explaining what the check will cover.

Department of Health: Fringe Benefits

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many staff in his Department and non-departmental public bodies receive (a) home to work travel allowance, (b) a car allowance and (c) subsidised health insurance.

Jane Ellison: The Department and its non-Departmental public bodies (NDPBs) can confirm that the numbers of employees receiving: a) home to work travel allowance; b) a car allowance; and c) subsidised health insurance are as follows:  Department of Health (DH) & NDPBsa) Home to Work Travel Allowanceb) Car Allowancec) Subsidised Health InsuranceDHNilNilNilHealth Education EnglandNilNilNilHuman Fertilisation and Embryology AuthorityNilNilNilNHS EnglandNil7NilMonitorNilNilNilCare Quality CommissionNil1431NilHealth and Social Care Information CentreNilNilNilNational Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)Nil115Human Tissue AuthorityNilNilNilHealth Research AuthorityNilNilNil Subsidised health insurance relates to optical and dental services that form part of the terms and conditions of employment by former employees of the Health Development Authority when they joined the NICE.

Department of Health: Pay

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average hourly earnings of (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of his Department were in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison: The following table shows the average hourly rates of pay for all Civil Servants in the Department by gender and by working pattern for the last five years. The average hourly rate calculation uses net hours for both full-time and part-time staff.  March 2012March 2013March 2014March 2015January 2016Female£22.34£22.23£22.23£22.45£22.48Male£25.37£25.41£21.69£24.40£24.56Part-time£22.95£22.64£23.60£24.08£23.95Full-time£23.74£23.75£23.12£23.11£23.21

Dental Services: Children

Mr Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 12 February 2016 to Question 25934, for what reasons information about how many three year olds received a free NHS dental check is not collected centrally.

Alistair Burt: Normally the Health and Social Care Information Centre is the source for any patient information but does not collect the data requested. However further investigation revealed that the NHS Business Services Authority is able to extract the information. We apologise for not identifying this earlier. All children receive free National Health Service dental care. Data has been provided for the number of courses of treatment (COT) for patients aged three where an examination has been recorded for the period 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2015 and can be found in the table below. Contract LocationNumber of COT for three year olds with examination recordedNottingham North Constituency1,372Nottingham Local Authority3,629England and Wales552,652 Source: NHS Business Services Authority Notes: 1. A CoT is defined as:a. an examination of a patient, an assessment of their oral health, and the planning of any treatment to be provided to that patient as a result of that examination and assessment; andb. the provision of any planned treatment (including any treatment planned at a time other than the time of the initial examination) to that patient. 2. Patient Age: Age for the patient on the date of acceptance. Derived from patient date of birth and date of acceptance.

Dental Services: Children

Mr Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many young people aged 17 or under received dental treatment band 1 in (a) Nottingham North constituency, (b) Nottingham and (c) England in 2015.

Alistair Burt: Dental activity is measured through the number of courses of treatment delivered. Data has been provided for the number of band 1 courses of treatment for 0 to 17 year olds for the period 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2015. Final data for 2015/16 will be published in August 2016. GeographyBand 1 Courses of treatment (CoT)Nottingham North Constituency14,767 Nottingham Local Authority44,498   England7,645,730  Sources: NHS Dental Services of the NHS Business Services Authority Notes:A CoT is defined as:an examination of a patient, an assessment of their oral health, and the planning of any treatment to be provided to that patient as a result of that examination and assessment; andthe provision of any planned treatment (including any treatment planned at a time other than the time of the initial examination) to that patient.

Dental Services

Mr Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NHS dentists there are in (a) Nottingham North constituency, (b) Nottingham and (c) England.

Alistair Burt: Data is available for dentists with National Health Service activity, for year ending 31 March 2015 and can be found in the table below.  Organisation Name2014-15  England24,762  of which   Nottingham North constituency52Nottingham Local Authority189  Sources: NHS Dental Services of the NHS Business Services Authority Notes: Dentists are defined as performers with NHS activity recorded by FP17 forms. Data consists of performers in General Dental Services, Personal Dental Services and Trust-led Dental Services.

Dental Services: Children

Mr Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the cost to the public purse was of urgent dental treatment for children in (a) Nottingham North constituency, (b) Nottingham and (c) England in 2015.

Alistair Burt: Data is available for the units of dental activity (UDA) under the “urgent” treatment band, for 0 to 17 year olds, for the period 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2015. Final data for 2015/16 will be published in August 2016. National tariffs for the cost of National Health Service dental services in primary care do not exist as the value of each contract is agreed between provider and commissioner on an individual basis. However to provide an estimate of the cost, UDA under the “urgent” treatment band have been multiplied by £25.00 which is an average value for UDAs. GeographyBand 1 urgent UDACost Nottingham North Constituency784.8£19,620Nottingham Local Authority3,673.2£91,830 England580,515.6£14,512,890  Sources:NHS Dental Services of the NHS Business Services Authority Notes:UDA are weighted courses of treatment. This measure is used in the funding of NHS dental activity and in setting contracts with NHS dentists.Potential costs have been calculated by multiplying the UDA by £25.00. UDA value is on average around £25, but varies across contracts.Band 1 urgent treatment is 1.2 UDAsData are for the period 1 April 2014 - 31 March 2015

Tuberous Sclerosis

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether NHS England's workplan for 2016-17 will include developing a policy for the effective delivery of care for people with tuberous sclerosis complex.

George Freeman: Most services for patients with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) are commissioned locally by clinical commissioning groups. There will only be very specific items relating to TSC included in NHS England’s clinical commissioning priorities for 2016/17. NHS England is currently identifying its clinical commissioning priorities for all services or conditions that fall within its commissioning responsibility for 2016/17; work which we are advised will be completed in April 2016.

Diseases

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will commission a review into the effectiveness of NHS England in discharging its duties in implementing the Rare Diseases Strategy.

George Freeman: There are no plans to commission a review into NHS England’s implementation of the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases. The UK Forum for Rare Diseases has been established to monitor implementation of the strategy across the United Kingdom. We have received a copy of the Forum’s first progress report on implementation of the strategy and this will be published on 29 February 2016 - UK Rare Disease Day.

General Practitioners

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to reduce GP appointment waiting times.

Alistair Burt: With NHS England, we are making changes to provide more flexibility for practices to meet the needs of patients. We have invested £175 million via the GP Access Fund to commission 57 schemes across the country. In total 18 million patients in 2,500 practices have benefited from improved access to general practice. The GP Access Fund is promoting greater innovation in how practices offer access. This could be, for example, through networks of practices offering shared clinics at evenings and weekends. The first independent report on the national evaluation of wave one schemes looked at how schemes have provided more general practitioner appointments and expanded the type of patient appointments to improve patient and staff satisfaction. A second national evaluation report will be published soon with updated results.

Genetics: Testing

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his policy is on the commissioning of a national molecular diagnosis service.

George Freeman: The Independent Cancer Taskforce recognised the need for more accessible molecular diagnostic provision in their report ‘Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes’, published in July 2015. NHS England is currently working with partners across the healthcare system to determine how best to take forward the recommendations of the Taskforce.

Ophthalmic Services: Children

Siobhain McDonagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average unit cost of a first outpatient paediatric ophthalmology appointment was in 2014-15.

Siobhain McDonagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average waiting time for an outpatient paediatric ophthalmology appointment was in 2014-15.

Siobhain McDonagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many outpatient paediatric ophthalmology appointments were (a) cancelled and (b) missed because the patient did not attend in 2014-15.

Alistair Burt: The information is shown in the following table. Information on outpatient paediatric ophthalmology appointments in 2014-15 Median waiting time in days for a first appointment153 daysNumber of appointments that were cancelled by the hospital36,533Number of appointments that were cancelled by the patient33,448Number of appointments that the patient did not attend65,436National average unit cost of a first appointment2£118 Sources:Hospital episode statistics, Health and Social Care Information CentreReference costs, Department of Health Notes:1Waiting time is defined as the time in days between the date the referral request was received and the date of the first appointment, whether it was attended or not.2Defined as a consultant-led single-professional first appointment. Separate data are collected are collected on non-consultant-led, multi-professional, and follow-up appointments.

Cancer: Carers

Corri Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the financial implications of caring for people with cancer and their families.

Alistair Burt: The Government recognises the invaluable contribution made by unpaid carers and the importance of supporting them in their caring roles. We are also aware that caring for people with cancer and other illnesses or disabilities can have significant financial implications both for those involved and wider society, for example, the Government, Carers UK and business representatives worked together to produce the Supporting Working Carers report of 2013, which estimated the costs to the exchequer of carers being unable to continue working at £1.3 billion a year. That is why we continue to support implementation of the improved rights for carers that were enshrined in The Care Act 2014. On the appearance of needs for support, carers have a right to an assessment that will look at a carer’s wellbeing and what support they may need in their caring role. The Department has provided £104 million of funding to local authorities for these rights in 2015/16. We also made an additional £400 million available to the National Health Service between 2011 and 2015 to provide carers with breaks from their caring responsibilities to sustain them in their caring role. The Better Care Fund includes £130 million of funding for carers’ breaks in 2015/16. In 2015 the Government extended to carers a right to request flexible working arrangements, and this helps those carers who wish to balance work and care. We are also funding a £1.6 million pilot project to explore how technology can be combined with professional support from the local authority and the assistance of informal networks to ease the pressure of caring. The Department is also leading the development of a new cross-Government National Carers Strategy that will look at what more we can do to support existing carers and future carers. We are also aware that the right support for the person they care for is crucial to improving outcomes for carers. The Independent Cancer Taskforce published its report, Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes, in July 2015. It recommended improvements across the cancer pathway, including on patient experience, support, and quality of life. NHS England is currently working with partners across the health system to determine how best to take forward these recommendations. As part of our approach to support people living with and beyond cancer, we announced in September 2015 that, by 2020, the 280,000 people diagnosed with cancer every year will benefit from a tailored recovery package. These recovery packages, developed in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support, will be individually designed to help each person live well beyond cancer, including elements such as physical activity programmes, psychological support and practical advice about returning to work.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the implications for the policies of the Cabinet Office of the recommendations of the Mental Health Taskforce report, published in February 2016.

Alistair Burt: We welcome the recommendations for government in the report and will be considering how best to integrate them into our work programme. There will be an impact on policies across Government in this period and, more importantly, a positive impact on people using mental health services. The Mental Health Five Year Forward View Taskforce Report proposes, and we accept, investing over £1 billion of additional funding by 2020/21 to reach one million more people. There are a number of recommendations in the report which will have an impact on crisis care services, accident and emergency departments, mothers suffering from mental health problems, suicide prevention, children and young people’s mental health services, access to psychological therapies and the physical health of people with mental health problems. The £1 billion announced with the Taskforce report is the total annual cost for all areas in 2020/21. Announcements on the development of policies, including those with reference to implementing the Mental Health Taskforce will be made in due course.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many (a) children and (b) adolescent patients in (i) England and (ii) London were admitted to mental health hospitals outside of their home local authority area in each of the last five years.

Alistair Burt: A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the period. The Healthcare and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) is able to provide data based on clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and Area Teams (AT) in England but not by local authority area. The table below shows the number of FAEs to a Mental Health and Learning Disability Trust outside of (a) CCG and (b) AT of Residence, for patients aged 0-15 and 16-18 in England and resident in London for years 2010-11 to 2014-15.   FAEs outside CCG of residenceFAEs outside AT of residenceYearAgeEnglandLondon ResidentsEnglandLondon Residents2010-110-152,392172294316-182,187349589182011-120-152,471190372116-182,223336571202012-130-152,246186412116-182,039323626162013-140-152,247191365416-182,275415633152014-150-152,184154378216-182,18341960117Figures for England are total figures including those for London residents

Department of Health: Buildings

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the annual rent paid by his Department is on 39 Victoria Street.

Jane Ellison: The Department does not currently lease 39 Victoria Street and is not paying rent for the building.

Mental Health Services: North West

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average waiting time is from referral to the commencement of a talking therapy course in (a) the North West and (b) Warrington.

Alistair Burt: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is shown in the following table. The Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) dataset contains information on referrals to IAPT services which provide talking therapies. Information is provided both for Warrington Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and for all 33 North West CCGs combined for the year 2014/15. Table: The number of referrals entering treatment1 in the year, with mean and median waiting times to first treatment (days), for IAPT services in 2014/15. Data shown for NHS Warrington CCG and all North West CCGs combined2.  Total number of referrals entering treatment3Average (mean) waiting time to first treatment appointment (days)4Median5 waiting time to first treatment appointment (days)Organisation name   NHS Warrington CCG3,2653128All North West CCGs combined123,4454424  Notes: 1In order to enter treatment a referral must have a first treatment appointment (an appointment with a therapy type recorded) in the year.2CCG is based on GP Practice. Where GP Practice is not recorded, or cannot be assigned to a CCG, the referral is categorised as 'Unknown'.3In order to enter treatment a referral must have a first treatment appointment in the year. Referral received date not necessarily in the year.4The mean was used as the average.5Means and medians have been rounded to the nearest whole number. Waiting time is measured by counting the number of days between a referral being received and the first treatment appointment. For 2014/15, the presence of a valid therapy type is used as an indicator of whether treatment was provided in the course of the appointment. Entering treatment figures are rounded to the nearest 5 Please note: It is generally advised that the median is used as the more reliable measure of average waiting time, as this accounts better for any outliers in the data Source: Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) Dataset

Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee

Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what meetings (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department have had with representatives of the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee since May 2015.

Alistair Burt: Ministers and officials in the Department meet with representatives of the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) on a regular basis to discuss issues such as drug reimbursement, remuneration and service developments and amendments to legislation. We have been in discussions with the PSNC since December 2015 regarding the Government’s proposals for community pharmacy in 2016/17 and beyond.

Ambulance Services

Michael Dugher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the ability of ambulance trusts to meet targets for (a) Red 1 and (b) Red 2 category emergency callouts.

Jane Ellison: The ambulance service is facing unprecedented demand. With December 2015 recording the highest number of Category A calls (Red 1 and Red 2) resulting in an ambulance arriving at the scene.In the light of this demand, the Secretary of State authorised NHS England to explore whether changes to the way that the ambulance service responds to calls could help improve patient outcomes. The results of this work will be known in the summer. In the longer term, NHS England’s Urgent and Emergency Care Review will aim to tackle the root causes of the increasing demand by considering whole system change to the delivery of urgent and emergency care, including new models of delivery of care for ambulance services.Information on the performance of ambulance trusts in respect of the Red 1 and Red 2 national ambulance response times is published on a monthly basis by NHS England and is available at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ambulance-quality-indicators/ This shows that 2015/16 year to date performance for Red 1 has improved compared to the same period last year, and Red 2 performance is also progressing towards the national ambulance response time targets.

Meningitis: Research

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many grants of what value were made by his Department for meningitis research programmes in each of the last five years.

George Freeman: Since 2011, the Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has made the following awards through its research programmes and fellowship schemes for research relating to meningitis: - Impact of conjugate vaccination on population immunity to pneumococcal and meningococcal disease in England: immunosero-epidemiological analysis (£605,843; 2013-15); and- Improving the diagnosis of meningitis in adults in the United Kingdom (£415,242; 2013-16). In addition, the NIHR funds research relating to meningitis through: - the NIHR Clinical Research Network;- NIHR Biomedical Research Centres;- NIHR Clinical Research Facilities for Experimental Medicine; and- Health Protection Research Units. Since 2011, the Department’s Policy Research Programme has made the following award for research relating to meningitis: - Characterisation of meningococcal carriage isolates from UK MenCar4 study (£199,990; 2016-17).

Meningitis: Vaccination

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department has spent on meningitis vaccine stocks in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: Vaccine prices are commercially confidential, and so we are unable to provide this information.

NHS 111

Mr Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans his Department has to review the efficacy of the 111 service in ensuring that 999 is not used in medical non-emergencies.

Alistair Burt: NHS 111 services are commissioned by local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) that should ensure all the services they commission are effective.NHS England’s monthly published data for the period April to September 2015 show that 11% of calls handled by NHS 111 resulted in dispatch of an ambulance.Most recent figures show that nationally 90.4% of NHS 111 users are satisfied with the service they get.

General Practitioners: Hampstead and Kilburn

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much funding from NHS England General Practices under (a) General Medical Services and (b) Personal Medical Services contracts in Hampstead and Kilburn (i) was allocated in 2014-15, (ii) has been allocated in 2015-16 and (iii) is forecast to be allocated for each financial year to 2021-22.

Alistair Burt: The information is not available in the format requested. Information provided by NHS England is in the attached table.



 Medical Practices Budget Expenditure
(Excel SpreadSheet, 20.39 KB)

Pharmacy

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will carry out an assessment of the effect of changes in funding for community pharmacies on patient safety.

Alistair Burt: The community pharmacy proposals for 2016/17 and beyond, on which we are consulting, are being considered in respect to the public sector equality duty, the family test and relevant duties of the Secretary of State under the National Health Service Act 2006. The latter includes the duty as to improvement in quality of services, such as the safety of services. At this stage we would note that all pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and pharmacies are regulated by the General Pharmaceutical Council, which protects, promotes and maintains the health, safety and wellbeing of members of the public by upholding standards and public trust in pharmacy. Also, under NHS pharmaceutical services, community pharmacies are required to meet clinical governance requirements, which encourage continuing quality improvement, including through risk management. An impact assessment will be completed to inform final decisions and published in due course.

General Practitioners

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many and what proportion of Personal Medical Services contracts by general practices in (a) Hampstead and Kilburn, (b) London and (c) England have been reviewed by NHS England; and in how many such cases have the surgeries been advised of the future funding arrangements to financial year 2021-22.

Alistair Burt: NHS England carried out a stocktake of progress in completing Personal Medical Services (PMS) reviews in December 2015. This found: a) There are 10 PMS practices in Hampstead and Kilburn; none of these have had a PMS contract review as yet; b) 620 (100%) PMS contract reviews are still to be completed in London; and c) 1,847 (61%) PMS contract reviews have been completed in England. The proposed London-wide contract and funding has been communicated to practices. Camden Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Brent CCG commissioning intentions are currently being agreed and will be communicated to practices in line with the timetable.

Meningitis: Vaccination

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people vaccinated against meningitis in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison: The National Health Service immunisation schedule includes vaccines which protect against the capsular groups of meningococcal infection A, B, C, W, and Y in the form of four vaccines: Meningococcal capsular group C (MenC), Haemophilus influenzae type b/meningococcal capsular group C (Hib/MenC), Meningococcal capsular groups A, C, W and Y (Men ACWY) and Meningococcal capsular group B (MenB). Statistics for the Men C and Hib/MenC vaccines are available on the Health and Social Care information Centre (HSCIC) website and can be found at: http://www.hscic.gov.uk/catalogue/PUB18472 The MenB immunisation for infants was introduced on 1 September 2015. Preliminary vaccine coverage for children born in July 2015 was 94.0% for one dose and 84.8% for two doses when measured at six months of age.MenACWY immunisation was added to the national immunisation programme in August 2015 following advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) to respond to the rising number of meningococcal W cases. The objective of the programme is to immunise all teenagers in school years 9 to 13 before they complete academic year 13. This is being done by replacing the routine adolescent MenC booster given in years 9 or 10 with the MenACWY vaccine, and by a series of catch-up campaigns targeting older teenagers. Data for the MenACWY vaccine is not yet publicly available. The Department is advised on all immunisation matters, by the JCVI, an independent expert advisory committee.

Blood: Donors

Mr Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, who will be consulted during the review of blood donations by the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs.

Mr Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether (a) ex-intravenous drug users and (b) former-sex workers will be included in the review of blood donations by the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs.

Mr Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how long the review on blood donations by the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs is expected to take.

Mr Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when the terms of reference for the blood donations review will be approved by the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs.

Jane Ellison: The Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood Tissues and Organs (SaBTO) is carrying out a review of blood donor selection criteria. Currently a working group is being formed. The process will fully involve stakeholders, similar to the previous 2011 SaBTO review, and contacting stakeholders inviting their contribution to the review will begin imminently. The terms of reference will include input from stakeholders and be published once approved by SaBTO which will be at their next meeting. The review will be holistic and evidence relating to the risks of blood-borne infections in people who have previously injected drugs or received money or drugs for sex will be included. The review will be incremental, with published progress reports and any intermediate advice. It is anticipated that the group will publish its final report in 2017.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he plans to take to ensure that the expansion of parenting programmes will be integrated with local transformation plans for children and young people's mental health services.

Alistair Burt: The Government has accepted the recommendation in the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health, published February 2016, to review the best way to ensure the expansion of the parenting programme announced by the Prime Minister in his Life Chances speech. The Department for Work and Pensions is currently considering how to implement this and further thought will be given as to how it fits with local plans for the transformation of children’s and young people’s mental health services. It is for local areas to consider and commission services based on the needs of their local population. In general, family support is the responsibility of local government. Local Transformation Plans produced in each area of the country set out how they plan to meet the full spectrum of needs of children and young people with mental health problems, and what services should be put in place to address these. The Children and Young Peoples Improving Access to Psychological Therapies Programme, which is being expanded to cover the whole country and extended into other clinical areas including meeting the needs of children aged 0-5, already includes parenting programmes for children with conduct disorders.

Health Services: Children and Young People

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure NHS England is working with (a) clinical commissioning groups, (b) local authorities and (c) other partners to develop and trial a new model of acute in-patient care for young adults aged 16 to 25.

Alistair Burt: Trialling acute inpatient care models for 16-25 year olds was a specific recommendation from Five Year Forward View for Mental Health (FYFV for Mental Health), a report from the independent Mental Health Taskforce to the NHS in England, published in February 2016. NHS England has accepted in full the recommendations of the Taskforce and is considering how to take each of the recommendations forward. The FYFV for Mental Health states: “NHS England should work with CCGs, local authorities and other partners to develop and trial a new model of acute inpatient care for young adults aged 16–25 in 2016, working with Vanguard sites. This should evaluate: developmentally and age-appropriate inpatient services for this group; supporting young people in an environment that maximises opportunities for rehabilitation and return to education, training or employment; viewing the young person within their social context; and enlisting the support of families or carers. This should build on the existing trials of new models of ‘transitional’ services for those aged 0–25.”

Personal Budgets

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to increase public awareness of personal health budgets.

Alistair Burt: NHS England provides a comprehensive programme of training and support for clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to help them to develop and publish a local offer of personal health budgets by April 2016. CCGs are now also required to include their personal health budget offer in their Health and Wellbeing Strategies, which are published in the public domain. To increase public awareness further, NHS England funds a national network of people with lived experiences of personal health budgets who champion their use both nationally and locally. NHS England has made it clear that CCGs have a duty to inform people who are eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare that they have the right to have a personal health budget, for example including information in the letter that informs individuals they are eligible. NHS England is currently consulting on the new CCG Improvement and Assessment framework, which will ask CCGs to submit the number of personal health budgets in their local area. The results of this will be used to inform the public of how many personal health budgets have been given locally and how their area compares with the rest of the country.

Offenders: Mental Health Services

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people arrested in (a) England and Wales, (b) London and (c) each London borough were diverted to mental health services after an assessment by liaison and diversion workers in each year since 2010.

Alistair Burt: We do not collect the data in the format requested. NHS England rolled out Liaison and Diversion services commissioned to a national service specification from April 2014. From April 2015 services were provided in police stations, youth offending teams and courts serving 53% of the population of England. These included two services in London: North East London from April 2014; West, North West and Central London from April 2015. The table shows the information available on mental health referrals. Liaison and Diversion - Adults referred for treatment for identified mental health needs from 1st April 2014 to 31 December 2015: EnglandLondon services   Referred for mental health treatment9,0932,541   Including: Detained under Mental Health Act 19831,200657   Admitted to mental health hospital22836   Source: NHS England.  Notes: Data refers to cases rather than individuals, the same individual may be counted more than once.Data for England is for all areas operating to the national service specification.Data for London is for two schemes operating to the national service specification, and does not cover the whole of London.

Prisons: Legionnaires' Disease

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many Legionnaires' disease incidents have been reported in each prison since May 2010.

Ben Gummer: Due to small numbers involved and risk of deductive disclosure, the number of cases of Legionella pneumonia in people in prisons in England cannot be provided.

Women and Equalities

Government Equalities Office: Pay

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what the average hourly earnings of (a) female, (b) male, (c) full-time and (d) part-time employees of the Government Equalities Office were in each of the last five years.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government Equalities Office (GEO) transferred into the Department for Education on 1 September 2015. Prior to September, GEO were part of DCMS. We are therefore not able to provide historical salary data.The Government Equalities Office (GEO) pays annual salaries. These have been converted to hourly rates using the calculation ((Gross Basic Salary*FTE)/52)/Weekly hours.Please find details of the average hourly earnings of the groups of GEO staff requested below:  Mar-11Mar-12Mar-13Mar-14Mar-15Jan-16Male-----£25.33Female-----£23.38Full-time-----£24.06Part-time-----£23.94